Only Business
by animeKS
Summary: When Kagome and InuYasha are forced together in a marriage that will benefit both of their fathers they must learn to live with each other. Can they get passed their differences, or was this arrangement doomed from the start? Rated for language-maybe more
1. Disclaimer

_This is for the entire fan fiction. _

_I do not own InuYasha or any of the characters. _

_I'm having a lot of fun writing this, so just the same, I hope you all have fun reading it. _

_Critiques are more than welcome._

_Along with any other words. _

_Thank you everyone. _


	2. The Wedding Part One

**Okay! This is actually my second story, and I'm really happy with it so far. It's taken me a long time because I can never keep the motivation. But that's beside the point. So far, so good. I hope everyone enjoys this! I own nothing about InuYasha. Have fun! :)**

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><p>This couldn't be happening- not to her. There was no way she was getting married… let alone to a man she'd never met. She looked over at her best friend, Sango. "Please tell me you found a way to get me out of this…"<p>

"Sorry Kagome." She sighed. "There's nothing I can do about this. I've talked to everyone I know. Just… see where this goes."

See where it goes? Was she serious? In order for her mother to keep her job, her father had offered her off to the CEO. Fortunately enough for her, he was happily married. Unfortunately, he had sons- two of them. His youngest though, was single. She sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair was up, but strands fell around her face in curls, making her look younger than she really was, and putting an angelic look on her face. Her wedding dress was much more extravagant than she wanted. Luckily there was no weird design or annoying beads that would take away from the dress. It was just… too much. There were no sleeves –not even straps- which made her uncomfortable to begin with. It had a very silky texture, which tended to cling, or so she was told, and the train of the dress extended about four feet.

This was it. She was going to die on her wedding day. She just knew it. There was a knock on the door, breaking her and Sango's concentration. They both turned to see a young girl come in.

"Hello." She smiled, walking up to them after she shut the door behind her. "Sorry we've never met before now." She took Kagome's hand and shook it. "My name is Rin."

They both looked shocked. "Rin… like bridesmaid Rin?" Kagome stared in disbelief.

"Yes… is there something wrong?" Noticing the duos expressions, she became hesitant. "I'm sorry if I'm not what you were expecting…" She took an unsure step back.

"No, no." Kagome stood up, taking a step towards her. "You just look so…" She trailed off at a loss for words.

"Young." Sango supplied, standing behind the bride-to-be.

"That's it. Young." She smiled, trying to reassure her.

"Oh." She smiled again, feeling relieved. "I'm told that a lot. I'm actually older than you are." At their shocked expressions, she laughed. "I'm twenty-three." She continued. "I'm also going to be your sister-in-law."

"I was told there were no daughters…"

"I'm the daughter-in-law. I'm married to Sesshoumaru." She couldn't get the grin off of her face.

Kagome was speechless. Sango was as well. "Wow…" was all they could say.

Rin looked over Kagome and gave her an approving nod. "InuYasha will be very impressed- and if he's not, he's an idiot. You looked amazing." The statement made Kagome's cheeks heat up. She wasn't used to compliments, no matter how small. "And you," She stated to Sango, "you look fabulous as well." Sango wore a floor length, blue halter dress. It was very simple.

The two best friends looked over Rin as well. "You look very nice as well." Kagome stated. Rin wore a similar dress, except, like Kagome's, it was strapless.

"Thanks so much. I was nervous since I didn't have a definite style to go on." Thank God they had similar tastes. "Where are the rest of your bridesmaids?"

"Oh, they're downstairs somewhere. They didn't want to be involved with helping Kagome get ready, as they have no sense of style." Sango said with a sigh.

"That's not true for Ayame… she's just late." Kagome glanced at the clock, and then back at the girls. "She's cutting it a little close for comfort." There was only twenty more minutes until they need to line up for the wedding.

"I'll go call her." Sango patted Kagome's shoulder in reassurance, grabbed her phone and walked out of the room.

There was an awkward silence, neither woman knowing what to say. "So… you know InuYasha… could you maybe tell me what he's like."

Rin stiffened a little. "Are you sure?"

Yeah, why would she be sure? Kagome nodded. She really did want to know. She didn't want to go into this blind and expect things that weren't really going to happen.

"Well… he's got a temper." She sighed as Kagome stiffened. "He's got a good heart, don't get me wrong… he's just… misguided. Oh, but don't get me wrong, his parents raised him and Sesshoumaru very well. They're the best family I know. InuYasha is just… misunderstood. He's pretty antisocial, so there's not much to tell." She finished lamely. "Please, give him a chance."

"I don't really have a choice." Kagome mumbled. She looked up at the distressed noise the girl made. "Oh, but I'll try to make the best of it. Promise." They smiled a little at each other.

"That's all I ask." Before anything else could be said, the door opened, revealing Sango and Ayame, as well as a man she'd never seen before. He had facial markings- obviously he was a demon; a powerful one at that. He had long flowing silver hair and wore a form fitting black tuxedo, showing off his very fit form. "Sesshoumaru!" She smiled as she made her way over to him. "Kagome, this is my husband. InuYasha's older brother." She looked at her husband. "This is Kagome."

He looked down at his wife. "Thank you Rin." He looked at Kagome. "It's nice to meet you." He looked at all of the women in the room, as if he were analyzing them; seeing if they were worthy of even being in the same room as his beloved wife, it made Kagome flinch a little. "I came to see why you were so distressed." He looked back at his wife.

"Distressed?" She asked innocently. He only nodded. "Oh, um, it was nothing. It was just a tiny misunderstanding between Kagome and myself; nothing to worry about." She patted his arm reassuringly.

"If you're sure…"

"I am." She smiled. He leaned down to kiss her on the cheek, but she pressed her lips to his. The contact was short, but so intimate that it made the other girls look away, embarrassed. Sesshoumaru straightened, but looked down at his wife. He ran the pad of his thumb across her bottom lip. He gave her a small smile, before turning and walking out of the room. He looked back once more, addressing all of them. "You don't have much time left. Don't waste it." He left them alone then, gently closing the door behind him.

"That's your husband?" Kagome looked at Rin, surprised.

"Yes." She could only smile.

"He's so intimidating." Sango replied.

"He's hot." Ayame commented and they all looked at her. "What?"

"Had he been single, that'd been okay to say, but his wife is in the room." Kagome sighed, slightly shaking her head.

Ayame turned to Rin. "Think of it as a compliment. You married someone that other guys envy and other women want. You struck gold." She smiled at the smaller girl. Rin just smiled and nodded. She was easy to please and get along with, which Kagome was grateful for, since they were about to be family.

After a little more conversation and Ayame getting ready, they all headed downstairs to gather the bridesmaids. Once they descended the stairs, Yuka approached her. "Finally, what took so long?"

"Sorry we were talking. Had you stayed up there, you would've known that." Kagome replied.

"It's too stuffy up there." Replied the slightly irritated girl.

"How could it be stuffy? The windows were open and there was a nice breeze." Sango retorted, obviously not believing the girls excuse.

"She's looking for guys to hook up with." Ayame said with a subtle sniff. "Her hormones are raging."

Yuka covered her body with her arms. "Ew, invasion of privacy, freak." She sounded disgusted.

"Uh-uh. No. None of that." Kagome glared. "You are not going to start problems with this. You know how I feel about that."

"You know how I feel about demons." She replied. "They're repulsive."

Kagome sighed. "Then you could have just denied my invitation to be part of my wedding."

"Why would I do that?" She asked, sounding offended.

"Because you hate demons..." Seriously?

"Then why did you invite them?" She stuck her arrogant nose in the air, raising her voice a little, drawing unwanted attention.

"Because they're about to be my family." She raised her voice as well, anger getting to her.

Every demon in the entrance stopped and stared at the bridesmaid. She looked around and glared. "Do you have a problem?"

"Yuka… enough." Kagome sighed before she turned to the guests. "Please, don't take offense to her. She was dropped on her head as a child." She glared at her friend when she opened her mouth again. She looked back at the guests. "Please. I'm really sorry." When they continue to glare at the two of them, she panicked. She looked behind her and Rin hoping that the fact that she was married to a demon she could calm them down, but she was gone. 'Oh great.' She thought. 'I'm totally screwed.'

"Is there a problem out here?" She whirled to see Sesshoumaru again; Rin standing right next to him. When nobody answered, he asked the question again. Finally Kagome explained the situation to him and he glared the woman in question. "If you want to live through the rest of the day, you need to mind your tongue. We don't take kindly to insults. Remember that." 'Or else...' was left unspoken, but there was no mistaking the threat. With that, he nodded to Kagome and his wife before walking back into the sanctuary.

"What the hell Kagome? He just threatened me… your best friend…?" She was whining now, begging for attention.

Kagome sighed. This was ridiculous. "Yuka, you started this. Sesshoumaru bailed you out. Don't cause any more problems, because I can't help you." She looked at Sango and Rin as the other bridesmaids gathered. "Are you ready?" They all nodded. "Good, let's do this."

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><p><strong>I would really appreciate reviews about what liked, what you didn't like andor what could be better.  
><strong>**Next chapter coming soon. :)**


	3. The Wedding Part Two

**_I'll say it again. I love you all. I hope you're all enjoying this story so far._**

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><p>"Ah before we go in…" Rin turned and lifted a little boy into her arms. "This is Shippo." She told him to wave at the nice lady that was marrying InuYasha. When he waved shyly, she waved back, completely entranced by the little darling. "He's the ring bearer in your wedding. I wanted you to know him before the wedding started."<p>

"Who is he?" At Rin's confused look, she clarified. "I mean, who does he belong to? How do you all know him?"

"Oh! Sesshoumaru adopted him as our nephew. It's a little strange I know, but we didn't want to go through the whole thing about explaining to him on how we aren't his parents later on in life." She put the little boy down and he immediately went over to Kagome and raised his arms, wanting to be held. "Shippo…"

"It's fine." She smiled as she reached down and picked him up, resting his weight on her hip. "Are you ready for this?" He looked unsure. "It's a really big job…" His facial expression turned nervous. She leaned in and whispered into his ear. "I know you can do it though." She pulled away and smiled down at him. "Are you ready?" He nodded and hugged her. She hugged him back and set him on the ground. "Okay, I'm ready." Just as they were about to go in, Izayoi, her soon to be mother-in-law came out, a worried expression planted on her face. 'What could be wrong now?' Kagome sighed to herself. She had met Izayoi a few times while planning the wedding, and what she knew of the woman, she really liked.

"Sweetie, don't be upset…" She started. That was never good. "Your mother just called me and told me that they aren't able to make it to the wedding. Do you have anyone to fill in for your father?" She asked in a rush, luckily the girls caught her meaning.

"Great." Kagome sighed. "Of course they couldn't be here." She wanted to cry in frustration. First, her parents had handed her off so her mother could keep her job and now they didn't even have the decency to show up to their only daughter's wedding. "Of course…" she muttered to herself. She turned her back to everyone as thought to herself. She hated being the center of attention… she needed someone there to walk with her. Rin leaned over and whispered in her ear, giving her a possibility. Why Kagome hadn't thought of that was beyond her. She turned to InuYasha's mother. "Do you think your husband would walk me down the aisle?" It only made sense. He was about to be her father-in-law and her father wasn't there. It was the next best thing. As she thought about it, another realization came to mind: None of her actually family was there; sure her friends and family friends were here, but none of her actual family was. Typical.

"Oh dear… I'm not sure. Let me go get him so you can ask him." Before she could reply, Izayoi was back in the sanctuary, searching out her husband.

"Isn't that kind of an awkward question to ask someone you don't really know?" She asked her friends and her Rin. She'd met him a few times, but she hadn't said much to him since he intimidated her more than anyone she had ever met.

"Not really. He's about to be a part of your family, so I don't see why he'd reject the offer. Besides, he'd be honored to walk you down the aisle." Rin said, with the agreement of Sango and Ayame; Eri even gave a nod of approval, but as usual, Yuka didn't agree, but she didn't disagree either, which was nice.

Izayoi finally came out with her husband, InuTaisho and together they approached the girls. "My mate tells me you have something to ask me." He stated gruffly to Kagome. Kagome noticed Yuka cringe and the word "mate" and wondered if InuTaisho noticed it too. If he did, he didn't comment on it.

Kagome cleared her throat nervously. "Umm, well…"

"Yes?" He was very intimidating.

"Kagome, you can ask him. He's not going to bite your head off." Rin giggled.

"I know." She whispered harshly to Rin and then directed her attention back at the man in front of her. "Would you… uh." She took a deep breath, calming herself. "Would you walk me down the aisle?" She tensed her shoulders and slammed her eyes shut, afraid of his answer.

He laughed. He actually laughed. She looked up, a little relieved. "Forgive me." He said, trying to compose himself. "You looked so frightened, I couldn't help but laugh." When he finally calmed down, he took her hand in his. "I would love to walk you down the aisle." He smiled softly at her and she couldn't help but smile back before looking back at her soon-to-be-sister-in-law.

'I told you so.' She mouthed. Kagome nodded.

Looking back at him, she smiled again. "Thank you." She told him, sincerity filling her voice. He only nodded before looking back at his mate.

"We're ready, if you'd like to go back inside. I'll be with you again in a few minutes." The words he spoke revealed how in love with each other they really were. She only smiled and walked back inside, but not before waving at the group, wishing them luck.

Once she was in her seat and the music played, Yuka Eri and Ayame were the first to go in, Shippo leading them. For Kagome, Yuka put on a face filled with happiness, but almost everyone knew how fake it was.

Sango and Rin were the next to go in, walking side by side down the wide isle and each right beside a set of pews. They made it to the stairs, up near the stage; Sango looked around and noticed how packed the church was.

It was full. Not an empty space in the church…

Except where her family was supposed to be.

The music changed into the wedding march, and everyone stood from their seats and looked near the back doors where the bride entered on the arm of her groom's father. Luckily, the veil covered her face, hiding her blush as she made her way up the aisle, not taking her eyes off the floor.

In a low voice that only she could hear, InuTaisho gave her advice. "Look up, or you won't see the stairs and trip all over yourself." Her head snapped up, none too graceful. She felt a slight, low rumble in InuTaisho's body. He was laughing at her, again.

They finally made it to the stairs, and the next thing she knew InuTaisho was placing her hands in someone else's. She looked up at her groom and was surprised. Surprised because he looked nothing like what Rin had described. He looked very in control and very even tempered… but looks could be deceiving. He did look good though. He seemed to have a nice build, golden eyes and long silver hair. It was obvious he was at least part demon. If she hadn't known that he was only half, she would have expected him to have pure demon blood.

He gently led her up the stairs until they were in front of the priest. He looked into the crowd as Kagome and InuYasha looked at each other, both acting very composed. They stayed hand in hand while the priest asked, "Who gives away this woman away to this man with their blessing?" She tensed. Her family wasn't here.

She was about to hang her head in shame until her friends and her sister-in-law spoke for her. "We do." They said in unison. She looked back at them, and almost cried.

'Thank you.' She mouthed and they smiled in return. She looked back at her groom and the priest continued.

"We gather here today for the joining of two families, the Higurashis and the Takahashis. We are here to celebrate the love between two individuals, Kagome and InuYasha." Kagome wanted to laugh at that. Love him? She didn't even know him. "The rings." He requested. Shippo made his way up to them and presented them with the rings.

Kagome gave the little boy a smile. 'Good job.' She whispered when he looked at her. His face was glowing as he went back to his spot.

The priest handed Kagome InuYasha's and he Kagome's. "InuYasha, repeat after me. I, InuYasha Takahashi, take you, Kagome Higurashi, to be my wife."

"InuYasha, repeat after me. I, InuYasha Takahashi, take you, Kagome Higurashi, to be my wife…" He placed the ring at the tip of her finger.

"My constant friend, my faithful partner and my love from this day forward."

"My constant friend, my faithful partner and my love from this day forward." Of course, this was business. He didn't really mean these vows, but he started to slide the ring on to her finger as though it was a symbol of his love.

"In the presence of God, our family and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow." The priest looked at peace as he said these words, and it was kind of freaking the young couple out.

"In the presence of God, our family and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow." He was feeling even less certain in his vows now.

"I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live."

"I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live." He slid the ring on the rest of the way and leaned over and whispered into her ear. "And we live for a long time. I hope you're ready." He breathed a sigh of relief as he stood up straight. He made it through that in one piece, though it seemed like forever. Now he had to listen to his bride repeat the words back to him. 'Great…" he thought. It took everything for him not to roll his eyes.

The priest looked at Kagome. "Repeat after me. I, Kagome Higurashi, take you, InuYasha Takahashi, to be my husband."

I, Kagome Higurashi, take you, InuYasha Takahashi, to be my husband." She positioned the ring at the tip of his finger.

"My constant friend, my faithful partner and my love from this day forward."

"My constant friend, my faithful partner and my love from this day forward." Faithful partner, was this guy kidding? She didn't expect InuYasha to be faithful… Hell, she didn't even want to be a part of his life.

"In the presence of God, our family and friends, I offer you my solem vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow."

"In the presence of God, our family and friends, I offer you my solem vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow." 'I'm going to hell.' She thought to herself. Why did they have to use these vows?

"I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live."

"I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live." Throughout her vows she had slid the ring on, little by little, but by the end of her vows, she slid the ring all the way on. Like InuYasha, she sounded a little less certain in her vows as well.

The priest smiled at them and briefly touched Kagome's arm. She forced her body not to tense up. She forced a smile at him and he continued. "In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, I now pronounce you husband and wife." He looked at the groom, envy in his eyes. "You may kiss the bride."

InuYasha let go of her hands and lifted her veil, finally noticing the tight curls that fell around her face. He smirked down at her and pulled her close. He placed his lips next to her ear and whispered. "You'll do," before he planted his lips against hers.

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><p><strong><em>Did you like it? Did you? Did you? Did you?<br>_****_Yeah, I get that the vows were tedious to read. I wanted to make it as realistic as possible and I didn't know what else to put in the chapter. _**


	4. An Awkward Reception

**Okay, so... I've read the reviews, and I've written down all of your questions, and taken note of the requests. I only have so many ideas, so longer chapters are going to be hard, but I can try. :) I'm really, really, really trying to get as many chapters as I can written before school starts next week. I do have more chapters written, I do, but I try to stay 5 chapters ahead, in case I need to change things... so hopefully this won't take too long. Thanks for reading!**

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><p>When he kissed her, something sparked and without thinking she wrapped her arms around his neck as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling each other closer. It wasn't until applause was made that they tore apart from each other.<p>

She blushed and looked down at the floor, trying not to meet anyone's eye. When the music started playing she felt InuYasha take her hand and place it in the crook of his arm. He escorted her down the aisle, followed then the maid of honor and best man and then her bridesmaids and the groomsmen. As soon as everyone was out of the sanctuary, they made their way to the reception hall.

As they waited for everyone to get seated, Kagome glanced at the priest who was actually looking at them, and leaned into her groom, inconspicuously getting his attention.

"Hey." She whispered. He continued his conversation with one of groomsmen, Miroku, if she remembered his name correctly. "InuYasha!" She whispered harshly.

He snapped his head towards her. "What?" He whispered back, though he didn't know why they were whispering.

"Doesn't he look like he's paying a little too much attention to us?" She asked,gesturing towards the priest, a little uncomfortable with the older man's stares.

"What? Don't tell me it bothers you…" He rolled his eyes; annoyed.

She glared at him. "You have a problem with that? He didn't touch you, so obviously you aren't bothered by it." It was lame, but that's all she could come up with as a retort. She rolled her eyes. "Whatever." she murmured, standing up from the table.

Before he could say anything, the priest was in front of them, offering up his congratulations. She instantly took her seat again. "I must say, the bride does indeed look beautiful today." He smiled at her.

She involuntary slid her seat closer InuYasha's, almost as if trying to get away from the priest. He looked down at her and noticed her discomfort. Slowly wrapped his arm around her shoulder and then back up at the priest. "I know." It was short and sweet, and wasn't much to build a conversation off of.

Kagome felt hands move around her shoulders, pulling her out of InuYasha's grasp. Looking back she noticed it was Izayoi. "Welcome to the family dear." She kissed the younger girl on the cheek.

"Thank you." She smiled back before looking at InuTaisho. "And thank you… for everything."

"It was my pleasure." He smiled softly. "You are family now, and we do anything and everything for family."

"Mrs. Takahashi, yes?" The priest was still there… couldn't he take a hint?

"Yes?" Izayoi looked up at him. "May I help you?"

"You have a beautiful daughter-in-law. I hope your son sees that." Again, he smiled at her. What the heck was with this creep?

"My son knows very well how lucky he is." She smiled sweetly, but her words made it clear that his meaning had clearly been inappropriate.

"I see." He nodded. "Mrs. Takahashi," he looked down at the young girl, "should you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask me." He emphasized the word 'anything'. She shuddered.

Kagome couldn't believe she was going to say this, but she looked at him and with a straight face. "I'm sorry Father. I'm not religious. My problems aren't really something a worshipper of Christ could fix." Slightly implying a sexual innuendo.

InuYasha, family and his friends were speechless. The priest looked absolutely horrified. Unable to say anything more, he excused himself. Once he was out of hearing range, Kagome and her friends, along with Rin, busted out laughing; the men looking at them with an incredulous stare. Sango was almost in tears she was laughing so hard. "I can't believe you said that to him."

"Did you see the way he was looking at me?" She said offensively. "I had to do something for him to leave me alone." The girls continued to snicker and soon the rest of the table joined in.

The reception quickly started afterwards; everyone giving toasts to the new couple, sharing stories of their childhoods and finally a toast from the parents of the bride and groom. Because Kagome's parents weren't there, her friends told the guests about her childhood.

Soon, the dancing began, and of course, Kagome and InuYasha had to be the first ones. It was tradition. He pulled her into his arms and swept her around the dance floor. He looked down into her eyes and she smiled up at him. "I'm surprised. You don't strike me as one who knows how to dance, especially so elegantly." She stuck her tongue out at him playfully and he quickly leaned down and tried to catch her tongue with his teeth. When he missed, she laughed again, a little louder. He lowered his head and took her bottom lip in his mouth, gently biting it before quickly standing straight.

"Don't tease." He looked into her shocked eyes. "I don't play fair." He gave her a wicked grin. He was playing up the newlywed-in-love façade pretty well. Looking around the room he noticed the other couples dancing, but all the while watching them intently. "They're expecting too much out of this marriage." He sighed, looking back at her.

"Don't worry about it. We didn't do this for other people." He gave her a look. "Okay, we totally did this for other people; that came out wrong. I just meant they can't tell us how to live. That was the only part of this agreement. We can handle out marriage however we want to. You know, married couples get divorces all the time."

"We just got married and you're already talking about divorce." He tsked at her.

"What can I say, I barely know you, so none of this means much." They both stiffened as the words left her mouth. "I'm sorry. That was rude of me." His parents had been kind enough to pay for all of this, and they had certainly been more than nice to her. They didn't talk for the rest of the song and their dancing had become awkward. When it ended he quietly escorted her back to the table, ignoring her for most of the night.

When the father-daughter dance was announced, the entire room looked at Kagome. Her family hadn't even made it to the reception. "Excuse me." She said before getting up and walking out of the room.

"Poor Kagome." Rin whispered.

"They probably didn't try to come." Sango replied. Before anyone else could comment, InuTaisho was out the door.

He quickly caught up to her and gently touched her arm. She spun around and looked up at him, slightly surprised. "Mr. Takahashi," she wiped at the tears rolling down her face, "what is it?"

"You honored me today by asking me to walk you down the aisle. Now let me honor you by asking you to dance." She looked confused. "I'm not your father by blood, but I am your father by marriage." More tears ran down Kagome's face and she nodded, feeling grateful. "Good then." He was giving her a lot of small smiles lately. He took her hand and led her back to the reception hall where everyone was silently waiting. InuTaisho nodded to the DJ they had hired to start the song as he took Kagome onto the dance floor.

It surprised her even more that he had such amazing skills on the dance floor. He led without missing a step, every move more graceful than the last. His steps were so graceful that it seemed as though they were walking on clouds. Soon other joined in the dance. She noticed Rin and Sesshoumaru, InuYasha and his mother and even Miroku had gotten Sango to dance with him. "I'm sorry." She said. "I'm not usually this emotional, it's just that wedding days are supposed to be perfect." He just nodded down at her. She lay her head on his shoulder. "You know, when I was younger I wanted the perfect wedding. The perfect dress, the perfect colors, my family here to help me with every detail and the man I love." He sighed and she looked up at him. "It's been almost perfect." He looked surprised by her words. "You said it earlier, you are my family. Even though my parents aren't here, my family is. They're missing out on a great event. The dress, the colors... everything is perfect." She paused. "I don't know your son, but I'm willing to find out more about him." She finished.

He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Welcome to the family."

She smiled up at her new father-in-law when the song was done. "Thank you." She whispered. It wasn't enough to show how grateful she was to him but words couldn't quite deliver the message, she realized. Kagome stood on the tips of her toes and placed a very grateful, very innocent kiss against his cheek.

After a few more songs, everyone took a break and talked about what they hoped for in the new couple's lives together. InuYasha and Kagome were both uncomfortable with most of it, since the majority of the well wishes was about growing old together; having many children and the love they feel for each other for the rest of their lives.

"Kagome dear." Izayoi called to her a little while later as the newlyweds and their guests sat around and conversed with one another.

"Yes ma'am?" She asked. "What is it?"

"How do you feel about pictures?"

"Um, pictures are nice…?" How unsure she sounded.

"Wonderful!" Izayoi looked most pleased as she walked up to them and pulled her and her new husband out of their seats. "We're taking pictures of the bride and groom… and their wonderful entourage." Izayoi graced their friends with her warm smile.

"Izayoi…" InuTaisho warned. "You know how InuYasha feels about that."

"Oh shush. He can get over it, can't you?" InuYasha growled at her and her face fell. "Sweetheart, please do this… You need memories of your wedding." She gave him a look.

"More like proof." He whispered to himself before he looked up at her. "Fine." He hmphed.

The photographer made quick work of all of his subjects; telling them how to stand, where to stand and even what they should think about to put the right expression on their faces.

During the final hour of the reception, Kagome noticed that InuYasha was missing. "Hey, Miroku…?" She leaned over InuYasha's seat to get his attention.

"Yes Mrs. Takahashi?" He grinned at her, until he saw her worried look. "What is it?"

"Where is InuYasha?"

His eyebrows rose at her question. "I didn't tell you this…" he stated before he leaned in closer to whisper into her ear. "No matter what he said, he noticed how distressed you were with that priest. He went to talk to him."

She pulled back in surprised. "Really?"

"Yes really. What, you think he doesn't care?"

She gave him a look. "Well, yeah. We don't even know each other, remember? Why would he care?"

Miroku only shook his head before turning his head away from her. She sighed and turned to Sango who was currently engaged in a conversation with Rin. That's when she heard her phone go off.

Turning around, she quickly pulled it out of the top of her dress and answered it. "Hello?" She hadn't recognized the number.

"Kagome." Her father. "I heard the wedding was a success." What was she supposed to say to say to that? Yeah, it was; thanks for showing up? No it wasn't because she didn't love him? What? Her silence prompted her father to talk more. "We'll have your things taken to the Takahashi home." He went to hang up but she stopped him.

"Wait." She said desperately.

"What is it?"

His response was cold, and it snapped something inside of her. "Where were you? As my father, I expected you to be here." She answered angrily.

"You are no longer my responsibility. Your wedding has benefited your family, be grateful you're worth something. You are that half-breed's responsibility now." There was no mistaking the insult he had just thrown at her.

"As that all I am to you, a bargaining chip for all of you? To a man I've never even met?" She wanted to scream out in anger.

"Everyone is a bargaining chip." He paused. "Your mother and brother on the other hand would like me to tell you they wish they could have made it. Unfortunately, we were out of town. I'm sure I'll be seeing you. Until then, good bye."

"Hey." She said, getting his attention one more time.

"Make it quick." He sounded irritated; good.

"InuYasha may be a half-breed, but he's more of a man than you'll ever be." She told him in a fit of anger before she hung up.

Slamming her phone down, she excused herself to go to the bathroom. On her way, she noticed demons and humans alike flinching away from her. Good, she didn't want to be fucked with right now. Her father had just screwed her over for the last time. When she reached the door, she opened it, and in a moment of pure rage, she slammed the door closed and she heard someone shout on the other side of the door. She didn't care.

She walked to the sink and stood there, looking at herself in the mirror. What was this really for? She got prettied up to lie to people. To help her family… supposedly. "You could still back out of this…" she said to herself and then flinched. She couldn't, not to the Takahashi family. That family was great to her; treated her like she was family. She just couldn't do it.

She shut her eyes, trying to calm down. When someone knocked on the door, she told them to come in, expecting it to be one of her friends. She opened her eyes in shock when she felt two hands slide around her waist. She looked in the mirror only to find InuYasha.

"You know you don't have to pretend that we're madly in love and we can't keep our hands off of each other. We're alone." She sighed. Still, he kept his arms around her.

"Does it make you uncomfortable?" He asked, smirking. She closed her eyes and shook her head. Actually, it was comforting. "Then why are you complaining?"

She sighed again. "What are you doing here?"

"You're scaring everyone." He said simply, annoyance lightly showing in his eyes.

Her eyes popped open and looked at his reflection. "What?"

"Your temper is all over the place. It's so fierce that even the humans have subconsciously wanted to stay out of your way. Calm down." He demanded. When she opened her mouth, he slammed his lips against hers, quieting her down.

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><p><strong>To all of my reviewers: I love you. I think because of what you say it makes the story so much better, so thank you. Any other thoughts about the chapter is most appreciated. I'm trying to write more so I can get more chapters up.<br>****Yay! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	5. A Not So Smooth Honeymoon

**Okay my lovely readers... this will be the last chapter I upload a chapter for a few days (a week at the most). My last free weekend I will be spending time with a great friend. I hope you like this chapter. I've made it as long as I could. Fifteen pages on Microsoft. I hope you're all happy, haha.**

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><p>She gently pushed him away and turned her head away, hiding her blush, but not before giving him a suspicious glance. "You're doing that quite a lot…"<p>

"Doing what?"

Her head shot up and she looked at him in disbelief. Seriously? "Kissing me."

He crossed his arms over his chest and looked away from her, "Keh. It's the easiest way to shut you up." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. "Besides, it calmed you down, didn't it?" She opened her mouth, but realizing he was right, she closed it, not able to reply. "Thought so." He gave a cocky smirk.

"Don't get conceited InuYasha." She gave a half-assed glare. "But thank you."

"Want to tell me what happened?" He really was curious. Something that could make someone like her lose her cool like that was definitely something worth knowing.

"I'll tell you later." She said. "I don't think you want me to get pissed off again. Not right now anyway." Chuckling a little, he grabbed her hand and took her out of the bathroom. When they reached their friends everyone surrounded them asking if she was okay. "I'm fine guys. Thank you."

The rest of the reception was short lived. Soon after everyone left… but not before wishing the two newlyweds well. Kagome and InuYasha drove off in the car his father had let him use, and went to a near hotel. They would spend the night here and then leave for their "honeymoon" tomorrow. It wasn't anything big, seeing as neither of them had wanted a honeymoon – they just wanted to get on with their lives. Somehow his parents had persuaded both of them to actually accept that they were going away. Luckily, it wasn't anything big; just a small island that InuTaisho owned. When they arrived, they exited the car and made their way up to the room. When they opened the door they stopped in their tracks. It was the Honeymoon Suite; they had hoped for anything else. "InuYasha… who made the reservation?"

"My mother." He growled and turned to her. "Don't expect anything."

"I wasn't really planning on it, dog boy." She blew off his growl and took a step into the room and headed towards the bed. On the way she kicked off her shoes and took a sigh of relief when her feet were free. "This feels so good." She rubbed her toes on the carpet. With that, she fell back on the bed. She shut her eyes for a minute and without realizing it, started drifting off.

When she opened her eyes again, InuYasha was out of his tuxedo and in red pajama pants with silver lining. She took a second to look at his chest. 'Wow…' she thought. 'He has a really nice body. Wait, did I just say that? Kagome, stop.'

"You should get dressed for bed." If he noticed her ogling him, he didn't say anything.

She nodded and slowly got off the bed, making her way to her bag to get her pajamas out before walking into the bathroom. She popped her head out seconds later and noticed he was on his phone. "Hey." she tried to grab his attention.

"What?" He asked, without looking up from his phone.

"I need your help taking my dress off." She replied, a little nervous of his reaction. His head shot up. "It's tied in the back and everything… and I can't do it by myself…"

He sighed. "Yeah, sure, no problem." He made his way to her and squeezed in the bathroom with her. For such a nice hotel the bathroom was really small. After minutes of trying to get the dress off of her in there, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back into the bedroom. Fussing with it again, everything finally came undone. Unfortunately, it slipped off of her body and landed on the floor, leaving in nothing but white lace panties.

He averted his eyes. "Where the hell is your bra?" He gave her accusing look.

She glared at him; she was doing that a lot lately. She covered herself. "For your information, I couldn't wear one with this dress. Thank your mother for that."

He attempted to step away from her, but somehow tripped on her dress, making him stumble into her. She tried to move out of his way, hoping he'd miss her and land on the floor himself, but his body came crashing into hers, making them both fall to the floor in a loud and messy heap.

"InuYasha!" She cried out from under him. "Get off of me!" She shoved him and he groaned in pain. She paused. "Are you okay?"

"Fine…" he groaned again. When he started to get off of her, he hissed. She quickly looked down to see what he was staring at. Her boobs. Of course. She opened her mouth to get his attention, but his lips latched on to hers. He pulled her body to his as he slipped his tongue into her mouth.

She tried to push herself away from him. "InuYasha." She whispered into his mouth. "You're just horny."

"You're right." He growled before standing up, bringing her with him. Dragging her to the bed, he threw her down and crawled on top of her; slamming his lips to hers once again. She tried to get his attention once more, but gasped when his hand roughly grabbed her breast, lightly rolling her nipple with his thumb.

Everything in her mind froze. They were married, but they barely knew each other. She'd been telling herself that all night. Should she go through with this? Would she regret it? She'd always prided herself on making practical and realistic decisions, but this... this was definitely not a practical decision. It was spontaneous. If she was going to have a spontaneous moment like this, it might as well be with her husband.

His mouth was back on hers; they were rough as Kagome buried her hand in his silver hair, keeping him close. InuYasha's hand slid down from her breast, under her panties and he touched her there, in the sensitive place between her legs, feeling how excited she already was. Gently, he pushed his fingers inside of her. Gasping, she pushed harder against his fingers. He stroked her as his nails dug into his back. She moved with him, against him, whatever it took to keep the pressure building inside of her.

She went still as InuYasha tore her favorite pair of panties. They were an early wedding gift as well; more like a gag gift since nobody would see them, but a gift just the same. Her hips moved against him. "Don't stop." She moaned breathlessly. He stroked her more, as she clumsily pulled at his pajama bottoms. He put his cock against her opening and she rubbed herself against him, making him wet with her dew. She rode her pleasure higher and higher, but still she wanted more. "InuYasha…" She whispered his name. Moving, she positioned him at her entrance.

He was panting, his own pleasure obvious, and without hesitation, he pushed into her, breaking her virgin barrier. He stilled above her; his arms holding him carefully above Kagome. "You're a virgin." He growled.

He moved inside of her, and she groaned, some of it from pain and some of it from pleasure. "I was…" She replied, her eyes shut, trying to block out the pain.

InuYasha knew he should have stopped; he should have never done this in the first place, but she was right: He _was _incredibly horny. Even if this was just business, he needed some sort of release, and she wasn't exactly complaining. He sure as hell wasn't expecting her to be a virgin. Not wanting to dwell on it, he tried to move again, only to get the same reply. "Wait, don't move yet." She tried to relax her body. Moments passed before she finally nodded her head, telling him it was okay to move.

He pushed deeper into her, stretching her, filling her, forcing air from her lungs in small gasps. He moved his hand back between her legs and began to rub her again. The way he filled her, kept filling her, as he moved deep inside of her, it made the pressure inside her build that much more.

He kissed her, claiming her mouth with his, penetrating her with his tongue as he was below. It sent her out of control. He slid into her, harder and faster, she broke away from his lips and screamed in ecstasy. He pumped a little more before finding his own release, all the while Kagome convulsed around his thick shaft. In the heat of the moment, he leaned down and bit into her neck, marking her as his, in the back of his mind he was telling himself he'd regret that later. He couldn't hold himself up anymore; he gently lowered himself on top of her.

"InuYasha… thank you." She gave a content sigh.

"I thought we agreed that we weren't going to do anything." He breathed against her neck, licking the wound he'd made.

"We weren't." She agreed. "But you jumped on me, you horny dog." It wasn't an insult, more like a playful gesture.

"You didn't exactly push away from me."

"Actually, I did." She laughed lightly. "You just didn't seem to hear me."

He tensed when she had said she did indeed try to push him away, but relaxed when she laughed it off.

"Don't worry, I enjoyed it." She reassured him.

He rolled off of her, and pulled the sheets over them, but not before wrapping his arms around her, and pulling her close. They laid there in silence, unsure of what to say. "You know what happens now right?"

"I don't know, in which aspect?"

"No offense, but this was a onetime thing…" He mumbled against her back. "So it's not anything about sex." When she didn't reply, he went on. "I meant that you're going to have to switch schools… luckily, you'll get to see Sango more, seeing as she goes to our school; not yours."

"I know." She replied. "I'm not too worried about switching schools. I never really liked my old school." She turned her head, trying to look at him. "Anything I should know about before trying to associate with you?"

"Don't associate with me. Period. I'm not one to associate with people I supposedly don't know, and I don't need my girlfriend on my case."

"Girlfriend?"

"Yeah. My parents don't know I still have one, but I'm not letting them run my life to the max… Heh, as if they could."

"So, don't associate with you, don't try to associate with anyone you hang out with and at the end of the day I come home to you. Did I get that right?"

"More or less, yes."

She stayed silent for a minute, contemplating the facts just pushed in her face. "I can live with that."

He'd be lying to himself if he said he wasn't surprised by her answer, but it was an acceptable one. "Good." He replied, groggy. After a few minutes she felt him softly breathe against her backside, and unconsciously, she touched the mark he had left on her.

So that was it. Could she really live with that? After thinking about it all night, before she fell asleep in his embrace, she finally answered her question. Yes, she could live with that.

The next morning they were picked up by InuYasha's parents and driven to a private airport. "How long are we staying?" Kagome asked, leaning forward to talk to Izayoi.

"Oh, just a week dear." She smiled. "I do hope you two have fun. It's been a long time since I've been on vacation." She sighed.

"What are we going to do for a week?" InuYasha practically whined. Looking at his father, "A week?"

"A week." He confirmed. "Get to know each other a little. You are going to be living together when you get back. Learn who does what, and what you two like and dislike."

They all got out of the car, and Izayoi pulled Kagome aside. "He's a little rough around the edges, but please, give him a chance." It was almost the exact same plea Rin had given her. Kagome smiled and nodded. He wasn't as bad as everyone was making him out to be.

"I'll definitely try." She gave the woman a hug as they made their way over to the two men. "Ready to go?" She asked InuYasha.

"If we have to." He sighed.

Giving the woman a hug again and awkwardly hugging her husband. She grabbed InuYasha's hand. "We have to." She dragged him on the plane.

The ride was uneventful and pretty boring. She couldn't get comfortable since planes scared her, and she couldn't keep herself occupied. She looked over at InuYasha and noticed he was still sleeping. She sighed. As soon as they took off he had passed out. She decided to be brave and look out the window, and to her relief, she saw the island.

"Please fasten your safety belts and prepare for landing." The intercom spoke.

She fastened her belt around her waist and looked at InuYasha who was still sleeping. She noticed that he didn't have his safety belt on. "InuYasha." She called out to him. "InuYasha!" She yelled a little louder. She looked around for something to throw. Picking up a magazine, she rolled it up and threw it at him. "InuYasha!" It smacked him right in the face, startling him.

"What, wench?" He growled. She pointed to the safety belt light that was on. "You've got to be kidding me." He put it on and looked at her. "Happy?"

"No." Her voice was shaky, and it pissed her off that she was showing such a pathetic weakness. She placed her head in her hands, closing her eyes.

He gave her a worried look. "Hey, you okay?"

Without looking up she answered. "Do I look okay?" Any other time that she would have sounded pissed, but she was too scared to feel any other emotion. They ran into turbulence on the way down and she felt tears forming in her eyes. 'You can do this Kagome.' She chanted to herself.

"Hey." He said to her, getting her attention. "Come here."

"Maybe you don't understand the meaning of that light." She pointed to the sign again.

He lifted the buckle next to him, where she could fasten up again. "Either you get up and come over here or I'm getting up, getting you, and then coming back over here, which takes more time." He explained. She took a deep breath and quickly unbuckled her belt and ran to him. She sat down next to him, quickly fastening the belt around her again. "Afraid of planes, huh?"

"Shut up." She replied. The plane jerked and she grabbed InuYasha's hand.

The captain spoke again. "We'll be landing momentarily."

"Close your eyes." He said to her.

"That's only going to make it worse." She replied, outraged. Was he trying to freak her out?

"I'm trying to help you." He snapped. "Shut your damn eyes." For once she did as she was told. He placed his hand around her neck and guided her to put her head on his shoulder.

They were landing, she could feel it, but InuYasha was right, this was helping. She didn't feel so scared. Still, she tightened her grip around his hand. They stayed like that, InuYasha whispering little things in her ear. Things that didn't make sense, things that were irrelevant and even a few dirty things, just to take her mind off of the landing, and it worked. When they hit the landing, they both jerked forward and Kagome let out a sigh of relief. Lifting her head, she gave her husband a shaky smile. "Thank you."

Once they got to their house… the only house on the island, she explored. "A week away from civilization." She found InuYasha in a room that looked like an office. He picked up the phone. "How do they keep it so clean?" The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. How stupid did that sound?

He looked at her as if she were indeed stupid. "They hire people to come here and clean." He dialed his father's number and listened to it ring. "It's not very big so it's not much of a hassle for a few people to take care of." It was true. His father was very careful in spending his money, and he had only bought the island for his wife and himself when they could get away. Finally is father picked up.

"I see you made it." His voice sounded gruff.

"Hello to you too." InuYasha growled. He looked at Kagome. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all, take your time." She turned on her heel and walked off, exploring the house some more. It wasn't much, but it still held an elegant touch. She loved it.

Looking out the window, she noticed the beach. It looked so clean, as did the water. To go out or not to go out… that was the question. "Might as well." She smiled as she kicked off her shoes and went outside, stepping on to the sand. She squealed in delight. "This is heaven." She couldn't wait; she walked into the water, letting the small waves crashed over her ankles.

"I'm sure they'd be pleased that you're enjoying yourself." She looked behind her to see InuYasha.

"Sorry, I couldn't wait. The outdoors was calling me." She smiled.

He shrugged. "Don't apologize. I don't care."

"Mood killer." She sighed to herself. "So, you talked to your dad?"

"Yeah." He obviously wasn't going to jump at the chance to pursue that conversation.

"Let me guess, it's none of my business."

"Exactly." He sat down on the sand, taking a deep breath of the fresh air.

"Hey." She got his attention. "Why'd you go talk to the priest?" She couldn't help but wonder about him. He had such hot and cold feelings about her and she wasn't sure where she stood.

"Miroku should keep him damn mouth shut." InuYasha growled.

"Don't blame him." She went to his side and sat down beside him. "I asked him where you went." She confessed. "I was just checking to see if I'd scared you away so easily." She teased, but the undertone of her voice told a different story.

He looked away from her, out at the water. "He was bothering you – his words anyway – anyone could see that. I'll admit, he was acting a little too friendly, even for me." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, noticing she too was looking out towards the crystal clear water. He fell back into the sand and closed his eyes. "If you ask me, he just needs to get laid."

Her eyes widened in shock and then she let out a carefree laugh. "I think that's his problem." She looked down at him. "He can't."

"Then obviously priesthood isn't where he needs to be if he can't get over his urges." He opened an eye and made eye contact with her. "He definitely shouldn't be trying to flirt with someone else's wife." She smiled at him. "Don't stress about it. If it wasn't me who said something, someone else would have."

"What?"

"Dad noticed it, so did Miroku and Sesshoumaru. They don't take kindly to people like that."

"And you do?" She asked.

"No, but I'm not going to jump down someone's throat over it; not for anyone."

She snorted. "Oh please. You know if someone… if a priest… were hitting on your girlfriend you'd be pissed off, eager to break off whatever contact there was." She lay down beside him.

He didn't say anything for a few seconds, contemplating what she had said. "Probably." He sighed. "I don't know. It's never really been an issue."

That much was obvious. "Well… thank you, just the same."

"You're welcome." They stayed there for the rest of the afternoon; taking in the sun. After that, they didn't talk for the next three days.

"I seriously thought he wasn't that bad?" She growled to herself as she examined her state in the mirror. She looked like shit. They had just finished being in a fight with each other – verbal of course. He had called her out on a screw up she had made with the meal… something his precious girlfriend, Kikyo her name was, would never make a mistake on. She had proceeded to call him a pig and every other name in the book that she could think of. How dare he compare her to someone? Especially that someone. "That was cruel not only as a husband, but as a person." She sighed in frustration.

She heard something crash. InuYasha and his temper. She'd become more than acquainted with it over the last few hours of their fighting. "Stop breaking things you dick head!" She yelled at him.

"Shut the hell up!" He yelled back. "You're so useless!"

"Useless huh?" She screamed. "I don't see you doing anything for yourself you jerk! I've done everything since we've been here!" It was true. She'd cooked and cleaned, even done laundry. He had told her time and time again that people would come here to do that for them, the cleaning anyway, and most of the laundry, but she was taught that she should always pick up after herself.

The next few days passed quickly and before Kagome knew it, it was time to go home. "Finally." She whispered to herself. Side by side, she and InuYasha made their way to the runway with their things. "Are you ready to be home?" She asked, trying to be friendly.

"Yeah." He said quietly as he made his way to the stairs, about to enter the plane.

The door opened and out popped Sango and Miroku. "Hello." Miroku sang, making his way to the couple. "How did the honeymoon go?" He smiled devilishly.

Kagome waved her arms around, signally him not to ask. 'Bad.' She mouthed and his happy face dropped. She looked at her best friend. "I'm so glad you're here." She reached out and hugged her.

"It's been hell without me, hasn't it?"

"Ugh, you have no idea." She groaned. "I've talked to myself every day since someone doesn't know how to socialize." She threw a dirty look at InuYasha, who just flipped her off before climbing into the plane, Miroku on his heels.

"You seriously haven't talked at all?" Sango's eyes widened in disbelief.

"We've had two conversations." She confessed. "One was about our wedding and the other was just fighting after being compared to his girlfriend." She sighed… she'd done that a lot lately.

"G-girlfriend?" She snapped. "What the hell do you mean girlfriend? You two are married."

Kagome could only laugh. How different their responses had been when hearing the news. "This is only business. If he wants to have a life outside of our marriage, who am I to say anything?"

"Umm, his wife?"

"Come on, we'll talk on the way back. I'm just ready to go home." She grabbed her friend's arm and they entered the plane together, taking a seat far away from the two boys.

Once they were situated, Sango looked at Kagome. "I'm surprised you made the trip, knowing that you'd have to be on a plane." Miroku looked at her, asking her what she meant. "Kagome is afraid of planes. Her d – someone she loved very much died in a plane crash… a long time ago."

"I'm sorry for your loss Kagome." Miroku expressed his sympathy.

"Thank you." She smiled at him, and then glanced at InuYasha and gave him a small smile before looking back at Sango. "It wasn't that bad, really." Sango looked unconvinced. "I had a lot of support on the flight over."

Everything was in full swing when they arrived back. After being picked up from the airport from Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi, they ate breakfast and met up with his family. They all started moving the two into their new home; a home that his parents had graciously bought for them. It was the perfect spot really, a few blocks away from his parents, much to his disappointment, and a few blocks away from his brother… something he really detested. "What? Do you think I am, two? You seriously couldn't find a house a little more… distant?"

"If you'd stop acting like a little boy, maybe they would let you move away at a greater distance, but you're still like a child." Sesshoumaru said coldly.

"Like a child? How the hell am I like a child?" InuYasha demanded.

"You're acting like a child right now; throwing a temper tantrum at the fact that I called you a child." Kagome giggled at his reasoning, seeing that it was true.

"InuYasha, don't argue. You aren't going to win." She laughed freely now. He only made a noise at the back of his throat, sounding his disapproval.

The moving went fast but it still took most of the day. Everyone was so busy they didn't do much talking, except for directing where everything went. InuYasha still refused to talk to Kagome though. There was one last room at the end of the day that they hadn't gone in. "Izayoi!" Kagome yelled for her from upstairs. She quickly came up, followed by the rest of the family.

"Yes dear, what is it?"

"Where does this door go to?"

"A room." InuYasha said in a snobby tone, giving her a 'what are you, stupid?' look.

She grabbed the knob, attempting to open the door. Izayoi tried to stop her, but it was too late. She froze as soon as she saw what was inside. "What the…?"

"What the hell is this?" InuYasha made his way to her, looking inside the room as well.

"It's called a nursery, idiot." Sesshoumaru stated.

"Why the hell do we need a nursery?" He demanded.

"They expect you to have children, dumbass." He sighed. "Are you really that much of an imbecile?"

"I don't see a nursery in your home." He countered lamely.

"Unlike you, Rin and I are both more than capable of making decisions like that, and even planning well into the future for occasions such as that."

"Sure you are." He agreed sarcastically. "You sure she even wants to have kids with you?"

"InuYasha…" Kagome started.

Rin sighed. "Sesshoumaru and I _are_ going to have a family." They all stopped and looked at her; Sesshoumaru keeping a blank face as he looked down at her. She looked up at him. "I wanted to tell you in private, but I guess this was one way for everyone to find out at the same time, instead of making hundreds of phone calls." She paused; looking up at her husband. "Are you mad?"

They all waited in anticipation for his answer. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. By the look that blossomed on her face, it must have been a good reply. "Rin and I will be going now." Looking at his wife, he gave her a soft smile. "We'll go pick up Shippo and then go home."

"Oh nonsense. This is a big day for the two of you. We'll pick him up after this and you two can come get him tomorrow." Izayoi smiled.

"Thank you." He replied kindly before escorting his wife out.

"What did he say to her?" InuYasha asked.

"None of your business. " Kagome replied in a sing-song voice before rushing after them.

"Hey you guys!" She yelled, catching their attention. "Congratulations!" She smiled.

"Thank you!" Rin grinned back, waving happily. They left and Kagome went inside, back to her husband and his parents. There they spent the evening getting to know each other a little better, telling her about how her day would go tomorrow at her new school and how much they enjoyed her being a new part of the family. InuYasha even contributed to the conversation, making her think that things were going to be okay now, even after their fight.

After they went home, the two went to bed, coincidentally in the same room since his parents had insisted, wondering how things would go for them tomorrow; forward their new life.

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><p><strong>In your reviews, a lot of you say "hmm" and "interesting" and it kind of makes me nervous that you don't like it, but I appreciate all of the critiques and positive feedback. I hope this answers some questions and asks a few more. Thanks everyone! <strong>


	6. Life As We Know It

**I am sooooo sorry it's taken so long to update. I've had writers' block and I've been super busy with school. College sucks. I want everyone to know that. It's worth it, don't get me wrong, but it sucks! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the chapter. I'm going to try to edit my others and start more chapters. We'll see where it goes!**

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><p>The days past quickly, each avoiding each other like the plague while at school, and some nights while they were home together. There weren't any good experiences at school. The first day she ran into Kikyo, InuYasha's precious girlfriend. She had definitely made her point about InuYasha being hers. The whole first week Kikyo had bullied her, and Kagome's husband just sat there, doing nothing to defend her. If that's the way he wanted it, fine. Karma would soon bite both of their asses. She hope they caught something... well, Kikyo anyway... maybe InuYasha too.<p>

Kagome sat with Sango during lunch one day, trying to create conversation. It had never been this hard to talk to Sango before, but they hadn't ever been around each other for a long period of time every day… sometimes people just ran out of things to say. "Kagome," Sango started, "correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you and InuYasha supposed to actually be acting like a married couple, even a little."

"We are." Kagome sighed, staring at the food in front of her. "An old married couple that hate each other." Sango sighed. "Come on, you know we're having a hard time getting along. You hear about our problems every day." She picked up her fork and just pushed the mush on her plate around.

"Well… have you tried?"

Was Sango kidding? She tried every day for the past two weeks. Being in InuYasha's presence was trying most days, thought for the last few days he'd been bearable. "Look Sango…" Kagome snapped. "InuYasha's... oh hell, I don't know. We did this for our parents, not for us. We're just not compatible!" Sango looked taken aback. "Sorry. It's just… he's being so antisocial it's driving me insane. I'm trying to get along, really, I am, but he's hell bent on staying far away from me."

"Have you asked Rin on how to possibly change any of that?"

Kagome looked confused. "Pardon?"

"Well, think about it. Rin is married to Sesshoumaru, and being half brothers they could have possibly had the same or at least similar personalities." Sango reasoned, though it didn't make any sense to Kagome. "Ask her if she knows how you can become closer to him, even if it is just as friends."

"Tell me." A voice came from behind them. "Why are you talking about InuYasha?"

They whipped around only to see Miroku standing there, looking smug as though he'd caught them talking about something inappropriate.

"None of your business, you lech." Sango snapped.

"Now Sango..." He patted her shoulder tenderly. "I didn't mean anything by it."

"D-didn't mean anything by it?" She screeched. "So you just randomly go around and sexually harass women?" Obviously they were talking about a completely off topic event that had happened; something Kagome knew nothing about.

"No! No!" He tried reassuring her. "That's not what I meant at all."

Looking around, Kagome noticed they were drawing quite a bit of attention, especially from InuYasha and Kikyo's table. Sighing she motioned for Miroku to take a seat. "Come on you guys, you're drawing too much attention to yourselves. Calm down. Miroku, sit down."

"Kagome-" Sango started, only to be cut off by her best friend.

"The way I see it is that if anyone would know about InuYasha, he would. They are best friends aren't they?" Her friend nodded hesitantly. Turning to Miroku she began to make assumptions. "He hates me, doesn't he?"

He laughed at her, loudly. "No, he doesn't hate you; but this is only business, why should he try to get to know you?" She opened her mouth but he placed his hand over it."That's his thinking, not mine. You should confront him at home sometime- away from the public eye. He's not good with confrontation, so confronting him out in public would make him speechless, in the end it would only make him angry."

"I can understand that." Glancing at InuYasha, she instantly regretted it. He was gone, but his whole table was sitting there glaring at her – still. "Is it just me, or are we the center of attention today?" They both looked around and agreed that they were; it wasn't just her. "If I have to deal with this anymore, I'm going to kill someone." She got up and walked towards the entrance of the cafeteria, only to be stopped by Kikyo. "What the fuck do you want?" She growled. Even being new here, this bitch had given her an endless amount of problems.

"Stay away from InuYasha, Kagome." She said simply, even though she had no real reason to confront Kagome about it; she was paranoid. "He's mine, and I will not hand him over to you."

"He's a person, Kikyo, not an object to be owned." She pushed past the girl and walked out, making her way to the front doors and walking out of the school. She mentally kicked herself. Denying that she felt anything for InuYasha would've gotten that bitch off of her back, but smart her didn't even think about it until now? Getting into her car she was about to start it and drive off, but she noticed InuYasha in the tree across the street.

Getting out she made her way over to him. "Hey." She called up.

"What do you want?"

"Talk. Is that okay?"

He looked down at her. "What's there to talk about?"

"Oh, I don't know… the fact that we should try to get along, our living arrangements… we could talk about the fact that we had-hmph."

His hand was instantly over her mouth. "I know you're not going to say something about that." He told her in a warning voice.

She pushed his hand aside. "Come off of it. We're both adults. It's not that big of deal." Even if it was her first time… She should be more upset about it, but she wasn't. Weird. She was more upset that he was upset about it. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind as InuYasha replied to her.

"I doubt our parents would consider us adults." He responded.

"I don't know about your parents, but your brother definitely thinks you're a child." She stuck out her tongue. When he gave her a dirty look, she made a noise at the back of her throat as if she were distressed. Bowing her head, she gave a tiny, humorless laugh. "I don't know about my parents… I think they see me as a means to an end – my father does at least."

"Want to talk about it?"

She looked at him, a small smile placed on her lips. "I thought you didn't want to talk."

"Whatever…" He looked back towards the tree, about to get back in it, but he turned back and looked at her. "You never told me why you were so pissed off that night."

"Does it matter?"

He gave her a strange look. "No."

She gave a sigh. "See you at home." She walked back to her car and drove off.

She drove around until she didn't know where else to go but home. She was surprised to see InuYasha there. When she walked in, he was lounging on one of the chairs, talking with Miroku and a few of his other close friends who knew that he'd gotten married. They all looked up at her. "Sorry, don't mind me." She walked into the kitchen and placed her keys on the counter.

"You're going to forget them there." InuYasha commented.

She looked back at him. "No I won't."

"Whatever." He said, before looking back at his friends.

She walked up the stairs to their room and lay on the bed, just passing the time. Soon, she passed out. She woke up when her phone rang. Pulling it out of her pocket, she noticed it was a number she didn't know. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's Rin. I hope you don't mind that Izayoi gave me your number."

"Oh, no, I don't mind at all." She smiled against the phone. "What can I do for you?" She looked at the clock next to her bed. 4:30PM; just enough time to make dinner.

"I was just calling to talk; see how everything is going. Is it a bad time?" She hestitated.

Kagome pushed herself off the bed and made her way to the bedroom door. "No, it's not a bad time at all. I'm just about to make dinner." It was her 'role' as the wife.

"Oh, I can call back later..."

"No, it's fine." She couldn't not smile when talking to this girl. She was just so adorable, even if she was older. She made her way down the stairs, surprised by the fact that InuYasha's friends were still there. He gave her a weird look before he went back to ignoring her.

"So tell me, how's everything going."

Maybe she should have told her it was a bad time. "It's been going. Nothing much to report. Lots of school..."

"It's been difficult with him, huh?"

Thank God she understood. "Yeah. You have no idea."

"Sesshoumaru wants to know if he needs to come knock some since into him."

The two girls laughed together. "No, it's fine. I'm holding my own against everything. Tell him to keep the offer open; I might change my mind some day." The laughed again. "So what are you two doing?"

"Oh, we're driving around with Shippo."

"Oh yeah? You should come over for dinner." If she were wanting to be generous, she'd ask InuYasha, but this was her house as well. If he could have friends over without asking her, she could do the same.

"You wouldn't mind?" She asked.

"Not at all. There are a few people, but I hope that won't bother you guys." She really needed another female in the house.

"Let me ask." She put the phone to her shirt and asked her husband, making the sounds muffled. "He said there isn't a problem. We'll be over in a few minutes." She paused. "I was actually on my way over to see you anyway." She confessed.

"Aww, I feel so loved."

"Good." She smiled into the phone. They made idle chatter until they pulled into the driveway.

Hanging up the phone she went into the living room. "You're brother is over with his family. They're staying for dinner." She informed her husband before looking at his friends. "You're welcome to stay as well." She went to the door as they knocked.

"Thanks for asking." She heard InuYasha say.

"You're not my mother; I don't need your permission." She replied before opening the door, where she saw Shippo reaching out for her. "Hey, big guy!" She took him into her arms. "How are you?"

"Good. Uncle Sesshoumaru and Aunt Rin took me driving, and and and, they're gonna have a baby." He announced excitedly.

"I heard." She acted more excited than she needed to, but she'd act like a complete idiot just to entertain this little boy. "Isn't that great?" He nodded. She looked at the couple at the door. "Come in." Kagome stepped out of their way. She put Shippo down. "Go get Uncle InuYasha." She told him. He eagerly ran to his other uncle, clinging to him.

"He's going to hate you for that." Rin said with a slight frown.

"He'll get over it." She shrugged. "Sesshoumaru, the guys are in the living room if you want to join them." He nodded before taking off after his nephew. She looked at the shorter woman beside her. "Come on Rin, we'll go conquer the kitchen." They giggled to each other.

The cooking was uneventful and eventually dinner was ready. Setting the table was just as uneventful but the girls had a good time together. When everything was ready, Kagome entered the living room, commanding the attention of the guys. "Dinner's ready." Shippo ran up to her and she picked him up, walking back into the kitchen.

The smell of the food had almost all of the guys salivating. "May I ask who made such a great food?" Miroku sighed in contentment.

"You haven't even taste the food yet." Kagome smiled.

"It has to taste amazing if it smells this fantastic." He grinned.

"I'll put my money on Rin making it." InuYasha said while he sat down. When the food was served, they all sigh with amazement on how the food tasted. "Yeah, my money is definitely on Rin."

"Wrong." She smiled at her brother-in-law.

Everyone's eyes flew to her face. "I barely helped at all. Kagome made everything." She smiled at the other female.

"You've been holding out on me." He shoveled the food into his mouth. "When we went to island, the food she made was absolute shit." He told his friends.

"You don't appreciate it, so why go out of my way?" She shrugged, delicately putting a spoonful of their dinner in her mouth.

He didn't have a response, which surprised her, but she wasn't going to start an argument with him. The rest of the dinner, they all talked about unimportant topics. They were all open and having a good time. They teased Shippo; Kagome always coming to his rescue.

Soon, everyone was full and as the time got later, they all excused themselves; Sesshoumaru and Rin being one of the last to leave. Rin hugged Kagome, thanking her for the dinner. "We definitely need to do that again." Rin agreed whole heartedly and they smiled at each other. "Bye sweetie." She hugged Shippo, who was trying not to fall asleep. He waved at her before putting his head on Sesshoumaru's shoulder. She waved at them. "Bye." When they left, she turned around to find that Miroku was the only guest still over.

"Well Kagome, my dear, that meal was fantastic." She thanked him with a smile. Noticing InuYasha's subtle growl, he smiled. "I'll see you two tomorrow." He let himself out and soon InuYasha and Kagome were in their room, getting ready for bed.

As they lay there in the awkward silence, InuYasha sighed. "Dinner was good." He paused. "Thank you."

She was momentarily stunned; she didn't know what say. "Umm, you're welcome."

"I'm also sorry." He whispered, turning away from her.

"For what?" She asked, turning towards him.

"For comparing you to Kikyo a few weeks ago."

She propped herself up on her elbow. "Okay, what's brought this on? The InuYasha I know doesn't act like this."

He stiffened. "What makes you think you know me?" He whispered harshly.

His words had her at a loss. She didn't know him, and that bothered her more than she thought it was. She lay back down, not being able to respond to her.

After a few minutes, she started talking. "My father pawned me off to you." She started. "I'm just a piece in this game he's playing. That's the reason he didn't come to the wedding; he didn't think he needed to since I'm no longer his responsibility." She paused. "I've tried so hard to make him proud of me and to do things up to his standards."

"What about your mom?"

She laughed a little. "My mom's just happy I'm breathing. She has no expectations of me, but she's very dependent on my father. Anything he says go; she's never questioned him or his decisions, even when it comes to own kids."

"Why do you call him father? You sound so formal about it." He commented.

"My dad died in a plane crash when I was about five. That's why I'm afraid of planes." She replied. "My mom met her husband when I was eight. They married shortly after and then had my little brother, Sota. Since their marriage, he's always thought of me as bothersome, but after my brother was born he thought of any and every way to get me out of the picture as long as possible." She made a disgusted noise. "It wasn't ever anything big; just going on a weekend vacation and leaving me with my grandfather, but to know I wasn't a part of the family, especially at that age... it hurt. Knowing that he wasn't my real father took some of that away, but still..."

He didn't say anything; how could he? Nothing he said would make her feel better about it all. It was in the past, after all. He lay there, and she thought he had fallen alseep, but he turned to look up at the ceiling. "Even now, being a half demon is difficult. Through everything, people are still judgmental assholes. I used to picked on when I was a kid, but then my dad found out and threatened to close down the school."

She giggled. "Could he do that?"

"I don't know." He smirked, "but he said he would. I've doubted a lot of things, but my dad's word isn't on that list." He chuckled. "Things got a little easier from then on, but when everyone found out that the Great Sesshoumaru was my older brother, I swear people worshiped me. They sure as hell worshiped him. That's why I'm such an asshole myself, I guess... because people only see me for who my family is, not who I really am."

"And Miroku?" She asked. She'd never seen him be an asshole to that lech.

He turned his head to look at her. "There's always a few exceptions."

"Well, if it means anything to you, I'm willing to find out the real you."

"Even if this is only business?"

"Yeah. Just because we're in a 'fake' marriage doesn't mean I can't care about you as a friend."

He didn't know what to say. 'I'm not sure how fake it is.' He thought to himself. Nobody, not even Kikyo, had ever said such a thing to him. "Thanks."

She smiled. "You're welcome." She turned over, giving him her back. "Now get some sleep, we have class in a few hours."

"Yeah.." He turned over as well; they were back to back. "Kagome..."

"Yeah?" Her voice was already groggy.

"Good night."

She smiled to herself. "Good night."

The next day was much more bearable, as were the days after that. They didn't talk to each other at school, but they didn't outright show that they supposedly detested each other. Two months had passed and they were becoming friends, though he still kept some distance from her. They'd been intimate on a few occasions, like him marking her again. They had had sex again, but only once more. It was more like a stress reliever for the both of them, and neither regretted it. One day, everything changed, and he reverted back to his old school self, treating her as though dirt was worth more than her. They were sitting inHistory class talking to each of their friends. Kikyo, of course, held most of the class's attention. Kagome and Sango cringed every time she gave an obnoxious laugh or said flirty phrases. Why InuYasha didn't say anything to her was beyond him.

"Ridiculous, isn't it?" They looked over to see Miroku; his face filled with disgust.

"That's sort of an understatement." Sango commented. "You can't stand it either, huh?"

"It's more like, I can't stand her." He smiled at the two girls.

"Why not mention it to InuYasha?" Kagome questioned.

"He's my best friend, so as long as he's happy, why should I? It's not my relationship; it's his."

"I don't see how he could be happy with that." Sango replied, looking back at the outrageous woman. InuYasha just smiled at her when she looked at him.

"Maybe he's not happy." Kagome thought out loud. "Maybe he just thinks he is... that, or he can't do any better."

"Oh, believe me; you're definitely the better choice." Miroku said in a serious tone.

"I agree." Sango smiled.

"Thanks, you guys." She smiled.

"Miroku!" Kikyo's voice rang above the rest of the students, once again. "Why don't you come over here and talk to us and leave those... things... alone."

"She thinks we're things?" Sango whispered; outraged.

"Calm down." Kagome reasoned.

"Oh, hell no." She growled, about to give that bitch a piece of her mind.

"If it's all the same to you, I'd rather stay over here with my girlfriend."

That cut off all thought in both of the girls minds, as well as the sound in the room. He looked sheepishly over at Sango, and gave her a nervous smile.

"You're dating that?" Kikyo's obnoxious laughter rang through the room.

Sango jumped out of her chair. "Look bitch, I don't know where you get off with your high and mighty ways, and I honestly don't know how people put up with it. It's ridiculous really. I'm not a thing, and neither is Kagome. We're human beings, and good ones at that. If you can't see that... well, maybe you're the thing - less than human at least."

InuYasha growled at the woman.

Miroku stood up, "InuYasha, let me talk to you for a sec." He gestured for him to meet out in the hall. He nodded as he made his way out with Miroku.

Kagome looked back at Kikyo. "Excuse me? Who do you think you're talking to?" She shrieked.

Sango subtly motioned for Kagome to follow them. "I know exactly who I'm talking to. I'm talking to an ugly, heartless cow." Shouts and murmurs erupted from all sides of the classroom.

Kagome slowly shut the door, only to come face to face with the two men, who oddly enough looked like they wanted to go at each other's throats. "Did I miss something?"

"He's just pissed that I let Sango talk to Kikyo like that." Miroku answered; tension thick in the air.

"You didn't 'let' Sango do anything. She'll do it if she wants to, anyone else's opinion be damned." She looked between the two. "InuYasha, maybe Sango's on to something."

His eyes pierced her with hatred. "Like hell she does." He growled.

"Come on, think about it. You're just going out in name. She flirts with anyone and everyone right in front of you. That's not much of a relationship. Maybe it's time you stand up to her as well, in your own way." She tried to reason with him.

"You don't understand." He sighed.

"I'm trying!" She wanted to yell. "If I didn't care, do you honestly think I'd be out here, talking to you about it."

"Someone like you could never understand." He replied.

"Why, because I'm not a half demon?" She sounded annoyed. "So fucking what? Get off your little pity party ass. You're alive and, contrary to what you believe, you do have people here who love you for you. From where I'm standing that sounds pretty fucking good. You're always going to have people who hate you and who use you. You're just using your heritage as an excuse for it controlling your life!" Her anger was rising; trying to contain it wasn't going to do any good.

"Don't talk about something you know nothing about." He shouted at her, making both her and Miroku step back; appalled.

"You don't want me to know, InuYasha! That's your fault; no one else's. Get your head out of your ass and start noticing that people do care about you!" The door flung open, revealing a very pissed of Kikyo and Sango.

"Get this bitch out of my face." Kikyo snapped at her boyfriend.

"Why don't you get out of my face, you whore." Sango growled back.

Rubbing her temple, Kagome sighed. She was starting to get a headache. "Whatever..." She whispered to herself. "Sango, I'm going for awhile, grab my stuff for me and I'll talk to you later on today." Not waiting for a reply, she left them standing there in silence. She needed answers from her family, and if she had to beg and plead for them, she would. Heading to her parent's house, she turned on some soothing music, hoping the headache would at least start to go away.

When she got there, only her grandfather was home. Luckily, he welcomed her with open arms. "Kagome, my dear. Where have you been?"

"Gramps, I've been living with my husband…" At his confused expression, she stilled. "You didn't know." It wasn't a question, more like a realization.

"Married? To who?"

"InuYasha Takahashi." If he didn't recognize the boy, he'd definitely recognize his last name. His father's company was known nationwide. Takahashi Corporations.

"You mean that demon's son." He definitely had a thing against demons, though she never knew why.

"Yes gramps." She started into the kitchen and he followed her. They stayed in there and talked for a long time, which made her happy. She was never one to talk to her grandfather very much. Especially since all he liked to talk about was antique things and ancient history. She looked at her phone sometime later, noticing she had been there for about two and a half hours. School would be letting out soon and her father hadn't come home yet. He usually was home, that way he could go pick up Sota without any hassle. "Where is everyone?" She asked him.

"Sota is at school." He replied. That part was obvious. She was more interested in where her parents were. "Your father went to run some errands and then go pick up your mother from work. He said they were going to go see you after he picked her up."

Her eyes went wide. "What?" She jumped off the seat she was sitting on. "I've gotta go gramps!" She quickly placed a kiss on his forehead, something she never did… but after not seeing him for what seemed like forever, she missed him, more than she thought she would. She ran out the door and jumped into her car. Speeding down the road, she raced to her house. She wasn't expecting a surprise like this. After talking to her grandfather, she wasn't sure if she was ready to face her parental figures just yet. Parking her car in the driveway, she ran up to the door. "Fuck!" she screamed. She had forgotten her key in the house this morning, just like he'd said she would a few weeks ago. Could this day get any worse? Really?

She slammed her fist on the door a few times. "Please be home, InuYasha…" She was about to pound at the door again, but it opened, revealing her husband.

"So, you finally forgot your key." He sighed. "I told you that you would."

She pushed passed him. "Thank God you're home." It looked like he skipped the rest of the day as well, not that she blamed him. Having someone yell at her for no apparent reason would want to make her skip as well. She was just frustrated. She didn't know why, but she cared about the guy, and watching the selfish witch walk all over him didn't sit well with her. She pulled him away from the door and shut it. "We have a problem… my parents are coming here after my mother gets off of work."

"That's my problem… how?" He countered, looking bored.

"InuYasha, please. I need your help with this. I… I don't want to see them." She confessed, even though she had gone to the house to confront them – ever father at least. It wasn't time yet. "Please…"

There was a knock at the door, and she felt as though her heart stopped. Her breath caught in her throat and scenarios of this evening played before her eyes. Her shaky hand reached for the door knob, but InuYasha swatted her hand away. He quickly took off his shirt and handed it to her and then quickly messed up his hair. "Go upstairs." He whispered. She nodded and quickly, yet quietly made her way up the stairs, but not before turning around.

"Hey, InuYasha?" She whispered loud enough to get his attention.

"What?"

"I'm sorry about today. I didn't mean to blow up at you... and I shouldn't have thrown your problems in your face like that."

"Don't worry about it." He put his hand on the door knob. "Go." She nodded before backing away from the staircase.

She made it to their room before she heard her parents enter the house, and InuYasha told them she was sleeping. No matter, they had said. They could wait until she awoke, and until then, they could talk to him. She sighed. Great. Fucking great.

She snuck out of the room and eaves dropped on their conversation.

"So InuYasha, tell me. How was the wedding?" Of course, her mother would ask that.

He surprised her by answering politely. "It was amazing Mrs. Higurashi. I know Kagome was upset that you couldn't make it though."

"She would be." She heard her father sneer.

"Sir?"

"She's so dependent on us." He sighed. "It's ridiculous. She needed to get out on her own."

"Forgive me for saying this, but you don't seem to think very highly of your daughter." The new voice surprised her. She was surprised to find Miroku there. How the hell did he get inside of her house though?

"He believes in tough love, even for Kagome." Her mother – always the naive one.

"My ass he believes in tough love." Kagome whispered to herself. "Just being tough."

"I couldn't help but notice that you said 'even for Kagome'." Miroku responded as respectfully as he could.

"Ah, yes. Kagome isn't my biological daughter. My wife and I have Sota. Kagome was from a previous relationship." Her father answered, but InuYasha already knew this. He detested her, she could definitely tell.

"Sorry for being so rude, but why did exactly did you have my father arrange for us to be married?"

Kagome was confused. Didn't he know? It was because his father wanted to fire her mother, and for some dumb reason, a reason they wouldn't explain, the only way for her mother to keep her job was for Kagome to marry InuYasha.

"My husband has an agreement with your father." Kagome's mother stated. "It's complicated, but we all think it's for the best, especially for you two."

"I don't follow." InuYasha replied.

"I got promoted in my job, so I work closely with your father from time to time, depending on the project. One day I overheard him commenting about you, and nosey little me, I told him I had a daughter who was almost exactly like you. He of course, was intrigued."

"No doubt." He sighed.

"We talked over lunch for weeks at a time about the two of you. Finally he asked if I were interested in finding my daughter a husband. I realize that it was a little unfair to Kagome to decide this for her, but I want what's best for her… I believe you can give that life to her InuYasha. You're wealthy, you have a good head on your shoulders and you're all very family-oriented. I think that's what Kagome needs. Your father has assured me that he takes care of his family."

"What was your reasoning?" He asked again.

'How many reasons do you need, you jerk?' Kagome wanted to scream. Her mind was reeling over the information laid out in front of her, but that was her mother, and he didn't need to harass her about it. She was already so frustrated. Promotion? She had been told her mother was going to lose her job, and she finds out that she actually got a fucking promotion? They lied to her, and that alone threatened to crush her spirit. On top of that, it was because of his family that they had decided this was what was best for her? More like what was best for them. She understood her mother's words. 'He takes care of his family': meaning that InuTaisho wouldn't let anything happen to them, financially anyway. It wasn't until her 'father' answered that she realized that InuYasha hadn't asked her mother, again.

"My reasoning was similar to my wife's." Cryptic as always.

Before another word could be spoken, she heard her mother ask if she could check on her. She began to walk up the steps to InuYasha and her room, and Kagome scrambled to the bedroom, practically throwing herself on the bed in haste, fearing of actually be caught. Her phone vibrated in her pocket and without thinking she answered it. "Hello."

"Hey, where are you? We're supposed to go shopping today, remember?" Her best friend sounded irritated.

Had they really made such plans? She couldn't remember, but she'd do anything to get out of the house at this moment. "You're a lifesaver for calling." She whispered into the receiver. "Tell me when and where to meet you and I'll be there."

Her mother walked into the room, but she ignored her for a moment, listening to Sango's answer. "Five minutes in front of your house. Be ready or I'm kicking the door in."

"I'll be ready." She hung up without waiting for a reply; making eye contact with her mother.

"I heard you were sleeping." She made her way over to the bed and sat next to her daughter's legs.

"I was… Sango called."

"How is she?" Her mother was trying to make idle chat now, and it wasn't going to happen.

"She's doing fine. We're about to go shopping." Sitting up, she pulled up her legs and scooted herself out of bed, around where her mother was sitting.

"Shouldn't you be home with your husband?" Her mother asked.

"Why's it so important that I'm with him every minute of the day? I'm sure he has his own friends, and I need to be with mine… it'll save me from the insanity of being bored out of my mind all the time." She made her way to her closet and picked out a new shirt.

"Do you really detest this marriage so much?" Her mother asked.

"No." She answered honestly. "InuYasha is a good guy, but we're totally different. It's hard to get along sometimes, but we manage." She wasn't even going to bring up the Kikyo situation.

She pulled the shirt she was wearing over her head, trying to zone out her mom's voice. Mid sentence, she heard the woman suck in her breath.

"What is it?" She asked, suddenly worried. She rushed to her side. "Are you okay?"

"What is that?" She touched the mark InuYasha had made on her neck. "Is that – did he mark you?" She looked into her daughter's eyes.

"It was twice… and it's fading." Sort of... She lightly ran her fingers over it. InuYasha said he would mark her every two months. Luckily, all of her shirts concealed the mark from the public eye. She'd noticed it the first few days she'd had it, but after that, she completely forgot about it. She was used to it being there so it wasn't a big deal anymore.

"When?" She asked.

Blushing, she answered, "That's kind of private." She quickly pulled on her new shirt, and went to her dresser to pull out some shorts. She pulled her pants off and replaced them. Her mother tried to say something else, but Kagome cut her off. "Sorry, but I'm kind of in a hurry. If you want to talk you can always call." It was rude, but her parents had used to her their own ends, and that wasn't something she was okay with. She quickly walked out of the room, trying to fix her hair as she made her way downstairs.

"Kagome." Her father's demanding tone stopped her in her tracks. She looked at them, waiting for her father to continue. "Where are you going?"

"Out." She shrugged her shoulders and walked towards the door, only to have someone bang on it from the other side, making them all jump. As quickly as she could, she yanked open the door, saving it from enduring Sango's angry fist.

"What the hell took so long?" She growled. "I said five minutes."

"Pull your panties out of your ass. I was held up." She looked back at the people in her living room.

She looked into the house, noticing the guests. "Oh..."

Growling, her father stood up. "I don't believe you have permission to go out."

"I'm married remember. I don't need your permission." She grinned at the look of distaste he held. She looked at InuYasha. "I'm going out for awhile."He slightly inclined his head; in his own way telling her he didn't have a problem. She stepped out of the door but he quickly called her back. She looked back to see her father grin in triumph. 'Put her in her place' written all over his face.

InuYasha got up and grabbed something from the counter and put it in her hand. It was her key. "Put it on your key ring so you don't forget it."

"Thanks." She smiled. Once again, she headed out the door, only to stop in shock and horror. "What the hell is that?" When nobody replied she looked back into the room. "Whose piece of shit car is out there?"

She heard Miroku sigh. "Mine." He raised his hand. "She's not much to look at, I know."

Sango laughed in disbelief. "You actually drive that thing? Miroku, it's falling apart."

"Hey, she's holding together well enough."

"You couldn't hold that thing together with duct tape and prayers, buddy." The girls laughed and Miroku hung his head in shame. "Okay, we're going." She smiled at the two young men one last time before they got in the car and drove away.

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><p><strong><em>Everyone, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Tell me what you did or didn't like about it. Thanks lovelies! <em>**


	7. Fear

**_I am SO sorry that it's taken me so long to update. I've been really busy. Sigh. I hate school sometimes... no... most of the time. I'm getting kind of bored with this story, I'm not going to lie, but I AM going to finish it. If I have to type day and night, I will find a fitting end. Maybe one day I'll come back and edit, because I know it'll need it. _**

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><p>"Wow that was a lot of drama." Sango commented, attempting to start a conversation.<p>

"You think?" She sighed, looking down at her hands. "Can you believe that dickhead?"

"Which one?"

Kagome looked up at her friend as she stuck her tongue out. "InuYasha's not so bad." Was she bipolar or something? Just that morning she had been complaining on how much she couldn't stand him. "I mean, I'm mad at him a lot, but deep down he's a good person." Where the hell did that opinion come from? It was like someone else was talking for her.

"Are you high or something?" Sango pulled over on the side of the road and turned to look at her best friend. "Seriously, InuYasha a good person?"

"Can you say he's not a good person… with good reason?" She countered.

"He's dating Kikyo; the bitch who's trying to make your life a living hell. Does that ring a bell?"

"That means he makes bad choices, not that he's a bad person." She looked forward, intentionally averting Sango's gaze. "Look, I'm just confused about him right now. Can we drop it, please?"

Sango started up the car, "no problem." The rest of the ride was silent and when they got to the mall, it wasn't much better. As they made their way through the stores, they didn't say a word to each other. It was boring, and they were no longer in the mood for shopping. They made their way to the food court and Sango excused herself, going to the bathroom.

Kagome sat at one of the tables, looking around, not particularly at anything. "Ms. Higurashi." She looked over at the voice, not recognizing it. Her eyes connected with a man she had never seen before. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I've heard many things about you." He grinned.

She was tempted to roll her eyes. 'I'll just bet you have." She thought to herself. "Sorry, but who are you?" She looked him up and down and unconsciously inched away from him. Something about him scared her.

"I'm Naraku. I know your husband." He nodded towards her wedding ring, something she forgot she had put on when she got home.

Her eyes narrowed. "If you knew my husband then you would know that my last name isn't Higurashi."

She glanced around quickly, noticing people watching. Was it just her or did they seem as nervous as she felt? Nobody rushed to her aid, not that she blamed them. He was very intimidating. He smirked at her and in a blur his hand pulled her shirt aside, revealing her mark made by InuYasha. "So it's true, you are mated." He ran his fingers delicately over her skin, sending a slight shock through her.

She shoved his hand aside, covering her mark. "Don't touch me." He took a step towards her, basically rubbing himself on her. She stood up and he pushed her back into the seat. Somehow the entire area became quiet, adding to her distress.

"Hey!" She heard a yell and he stepped back and began to walk away from her. Sango was beside her in a second. "Are you okay?"

"I…I'm fine." She looked stunned as her eyes met Sango. Tears started running down her face.

Sango kneeled beside her and others rushed to her side as well. "What's wrong? Did he do something to you?"

She didn't know what snapped inside of her, but she broke down. She didn't know what to say. "I need InuYasha." She whispered. Sango quickly nodded and pulled her phone out of her pocket. Kagome pulled her knees up to her chest. The cocoon made her feel a little safer.

Minutes later her best friend was back at her side. "He's coming. I called Rin and Sesshoumaru as well. They're also on their way. They'll be here in a few minutes." Kagome nodded and cried to herself some more. Others around her tried to give soothing words, attempting to calm her down, but nothing worked. It was like she couldn't hear any of them.

'What the hell did he do to me?' She thought to herself as tears continued to roll down her cheeks. 'I've never been this scared in my life.' She honestly didn't' know why she had wanted InuYasha, but something inside of her called out for him.

"Excuse me!" Rin pushed her way through the people who crowded around Kagome. She knelt down by her side. "What happened?" She wrapped her arm around the younger girl's shoulder. When she didn't reply, Rin looked at Sango.

"I don't know." She confessed. "Some guy came over and started talking to her sometime while I was in the restroom. I walked out and I saw him shove her into the chair." She looked down at Kagome. "When I got over here he was walking off and she was crying."

Rin looked back down at her sister-in-law. "Kagome, sweetie, you have to tell me what happened." She still didn't reply. "Did he touch you?" She nodded and placed her hand over her collarbone. She felt Rin stiffen as she pulled the fabric back to reveal her mark. "Sesshoumaru…" She began.

Sesshoumaru cut off her words with a growl. They all looked up, Kagome's tears slowly drying up. "Was he a demon?" Kagome shrugged, still not able to speak. She didn't know if he was or not, but if she had to guess, she'd say that he was. She had to hand it to him though; even in such a situation he still held a very calm demeanor. Just by looking at him, she would've assumed that he was impassive about the situation, but his growl earlier proved otherwise.

Before he could reply, InuYasha and Miroku ran up to them, slowly followed by her parents. She had forgotten they were at their house. InuYasha asked Kagome what was wrong, but even with him, she couldn't find her voice. He looked at his brother. "What happened?"

"We can only assume that a demon touched her." At InuYasha's confused expression, Sesshoumaru sighed and then pointed to his own collarbone. His brother's eyes widened, and then darkened. It was an intimate touch for demons, for the ones that were already mated anyway. To humans it was just another touch, but mated ones subconsciously even felt the invasion of intimate privacy.

"Why isn't she talking?" He asked Sango.

"I don't know. She hasn't said a word since they got here." She pointed to his brother and sister-in-law. "She asked for you though. That's the only thing she's said." She looked anxiously at Miroku. It was obvious she was seriously worried about her best friend.

"Can I have a minute with her?" They nodded and he sighed. "Alone." Sesshoumaru grabbed his wife's hand and pulled her back to the other side of the food court. Obviously that wouldn't do anything since he had advanced hearing, but it was a respectable distance. Everyone quickly followed his example, except her father.

"I'm her father, whatever she wants to say, I have the right now hear." He stated.

God he was so conceited and he pushed InuYasha's patience. "Look, I want to talk to her alone. It's not about what she wants to say, it's about what I want to say. I've been pleasant to you this whole time because I was being courteous. I really couldn't care less about you or your opinions. Move back or I'll have someone move you." He growled.

He opened his mouth but Sesshoumaru was there. "I suggest you move away from my brother and his wife, or you'll to be carried out of here." 'Broken' was left unsaid, but her father must have read it loud and clear. InuYasha had little patience for people like him but Sesshoumaru had absolutely no patience. He excused himself, and Sesshoumaru followed after him, making sure he kept his distance.

InuYasha looked back at his wife. "Kagome, you have to tell me what happened."

She looked at him, not knowing where to start. She looked into his eyes, lost. He brought his hand up and cupped her face and she grasped it and slowly brought it down to the mark on her collarbone. He touched it lightly and looked into her eyes. "I didn't know what to do." She whispered for only him to hear. "I was so scared." That much was obvious. He'd never seen her so scared, not even on the plane.

"You know I'm not going to let anything happen to you, don't you?" His words were sincere. He'd never let anything happen to her. He really did care about her. Tears started rolling down her face again, and she slowly unfolded from her cocoon and drew him into a hug.

"Thank you." She whispered, holding onto him for dear life. At that moment, he was her lifeline.

He didn't say anything as he buried his nose over the mark. It wasn't an arousing feeling, but it was very intimate, even for a human. He vaguely understood why she reacted the way she did, even if she didn't understand it herself. After staying like that for a few minutes, he finally pulled away, signally for his friends and her parents to rejoin them. Bystanders had already walked off, but others walking by still kept their distance. "Do you know who it was?" He asked as everyone came closer.

"I've never met him before, but he said he knew you." She looked him in the eyes. "He touched me here," covering her mark with her hand, "and he looked somewhat surprised. He sounded confused when he commented about me being mated." She faintly heard someone behind her suck in a sharp breath, but she needed to get this out. "I don't like being touched, so I shoved him away. I stood up, intending to walk away, but he just shoved me back down." Her voice cracked, and he tried to calm her, and Sango finished her story for her.

InuYasha nodded and then stood up and held out his hand for her. Kagome looked at it, then at his face and then back at his hand. She took it and he tugged her off of the chair and into his arms. She turned around in his arms to look at their friends and he rested his chin on her shoulder.

Rin smiled before asking, "Did he by chance tell you his name?"

Kagome visibly stiffened. InuYasha whispered into her ear, telling her that he was right there and nothing was going to happen. She relaxed a little before nodding. "He said his name was Naraku." Everyone stiffened and InuYasha's grip tightened making her a little uncomfortable.

Sesshoumaru wrapped his arm around Rin's shoulder protectively. He looked at Kagome, his eyes dark. "You need to stay away from him."

She nodded. "You don't have to tell me twice." She leaned into InuYasha and whispered to him. "You're holding on a little tight." He relaxed a little, but it didn't make much a difference. She looked back to everyone and for some reason her "parents" are what stood out… more like her "father's" expression. She sighed, "I think it's time we go home."

"We'll go to my parents' house for the night." He responded. When she gave him a confused look, he only gave her a soft smile. "It's just as a precaution."

"May I have a word with you?" They looked to see her parental unit there as they looked at InuYasha. He shrugged.

Kagome took his hand in hers and gave a slight squeeze, "I'll be right over there." She said, pointing towards the doors that led to the outside.

Rin came up beside her and linked arms with her. "We'll be there with her. Take your time." She smiled. InuYasha looked at Sesshoumaru, who only nodded. They shared a silent moment of understanding.

As they walked off InuYasha turned to Kagome's mother and her husband. "What can I do for you?"

His voice was cold. "You marked her?" He growled.

For a human, he certainly made the sound of an animal, which InuYasha on some level, could respect. "And that's your business how?" He folded his arms.

"She's my daughter."

"No." He growled back. "She's not. She's just a pawn in your game. She _IS_ my wife though, and I don't need to ask your permission to do anything to or with her."

"She's my daughter-"

InuYasha cut him off. "That you traded for a payment! Sorry, but that doesn't exactly make you father of the year." Her father took a menacing step towards him. "What? You're going to play the big guy now? Seriously? What do you think that's going to do, get your daughter to respect you? Pfft. It's only going to make you look like a bully. Besides, it's a little late for that, don't you think?" He took a step towards her father.

Kagome was there in an instant, grabbing his arm. "InuYasha, he isn't worth it. Please…" He looked back at her, giving her father the opening he needed. He pulled his fist back, but it never made contact with her husband. Sesshoumaru grabbed his hand, slightly crushing it. He cried out, but nobody had pity on him. Her "father" had brought it on himself.

InuYasha sneered at him. "Don't try to contact us again." He pulled Kagome against him and looked at her mother, who looked shocked and a little scared. "Anything you need from Kagome you can discuss with my father." He turned with her and they walked away in silence.

When they got in the car and headed to his parents' house, she broke the silence. "I feel kind of bad for her." She commented. "My mother…"

"Don't." He sighed. "She chose her life, don't make excuses for her."

"But she's my mother." She looked at him. "What would you do if it were your mother?"

He slammed on the breaks; stopping in the middle of the road. Luckily, there was no other car around to witness this, or worse, be in an accident because of it. "My mother would never do anything like that. Don't even compare the two."

She sighed. "You just don't get it."

He took a deep breath and started the car again. "You're defending what your mother has done to you."

"No!" She paused. "It's… it's not like that. I'm defending her because she's my mother, not because I agree with what she's done. I love her in spite of what she's done."

"Would you be like her if you had children?"

She gave him an annoyed expression. "You know me. Do you really think I'd do something like that?"

"I was just making sure."

"Do you really think I could be like that though?"

He glanced at her. "You? Submissive? I wish." He said under his breath.

She pinched his ear. "I heard that."

He turned into his parent's estate before swatting her hand away. "You were pretty submissive on our wedding night." He stuck his tongue out at her, and her mouth dropped. She was speechless. "What?" He asked, when she didn't say anything.

"You really just brought that up?" She asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I? It was relevant to our conversation." He parked the car and then turned to look at her.

"You've regretted that we did that. You'd refused to talk about it." She looked at him, confused.

He snorted. "You would think that. I didn't ever say I regretted it, did I? No, I didn't. I refuse to talk about it in public. Not exactly a great conversation starter."

"Especially not for Kikyo." She replied without thinking. His eyes darkened and she regretted those words instantly. "I'm sorry, that was rude."

"And uncalled for." He got out of the car and walked towards the front door, not even waiting for her.

She climbed out after him and quickly reached his side. "InuYasha." She grabbed his arm, stopping him. "I'm sorry. You're right; it was uncalled for."

He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "It's fine. We all say things we don't mean." He lead her inside.

'Oh, I meant it.' She thought. 'I just didn't mean to say it out loud.' Inside, they were greeted with the surprise of their life. The whole gang was there, which wasn't much of a surprise, but Kikyo was there and she practically threw herself at InuYasha.

He caught her, and stumbled back a little bit. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

"I wanted to surprise you. I heard that you had to babysit this thing…" She looked at Kagome. "I thought I'd keep you company."

"Excuse me; I think I need to go throw up." Kagome said, stepping away from them.

Rin was by her side. "Is lunch not agreeing with you?"

Kikyo snickered.

"No, her over-use of perfume isn't agreeing with my sense of smell." She looked at the girls. "Can I borrow you two for a minute?"

They all looked at Sesshoumaru. Ever since Rin had gotten pregnant, he'd been very wary about her being out of his sight.

He gave them a slight nod, and they were up the stairs. They walked into a small room and they all sat down. "I swear, we just got here. I would have told you if she were here."

"It's okay, I know." She smiled. "I actually need some advice." The girls stared at her. "I… I think I'm pregnant."

They squealed and Sango was there, hugging her like there was no tomorrow. Rin just smiled. "I would get up and hug you too, but all this moving around makes me tired."

They all laughed and Kagome got up and hugged the smaller girl. "I love you guys."

"Have you told InuYasha?" Sango asked, taking her seat again.

"No." She sighed. "I want him to know, but… with Kikyo… I don't want him to have to choose because of a baby."

"I understand… to an extent." Rin replied. "But I think secretly InuYasha does love you. He shows a lot of patience with you when you do a lot of things that would normally irritate him, but with Kikyo- he doesn't put up with it. Ever."

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

Rin nodded. "Of course."

She pulled her shirt down, revealing her marking. "What do this mean, really?"

"I think you should ask InuYasha..."

"I would, but I have a feeling that he won't answer me." She looked desperate. "Please."

"Okay..." She took a deep breath. "Well... in a nutshell it means that even outside of a human marriage, you're still meant for each other." At their confused looks, she explained a little more. "Every demon has his own true mate- that mark proves that you're his."

"He could have just marked the wrong girl." Sango commented.

"Uh-uh. Doesn't work like that. You're unique, Kagome. Something about you called out to him. He might be with Kikyo, but his heart and his life yours, completely. Sooner or later -hopefully sooner - he'll leave Kikyo." Before she could continue, there was a knock at the door.

Sesshoumaru opened the door and apologized. "I know this wasn't very much time, but I need my wife back. I think my father is about to have us all meet in the living room to talk about what happened." They all nodded and Rin got up to rejoin her husband.

"Go." Kagome said to Sango. "I'll be down in a minute." She nodded before joining Rin and Sesshoumaru.

She needed to compose herself. She needed to think of how she wanted to tell InuYasha. She touched where her mark should have been. She just needed a minute to herself.

But for Kagome, that minute never came.

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><p><strong><em>I love you all for sticking with me this far. I'm going to try to finish this within the next few weeks, at the most. Review. Tell me what you think.<em>**


	8. Is It Over?

**_Oh you guys are so amazing. I seriously apologize that it's taking this long. It shouldn't. Really, I have no excuses. I'm doing major construction on this story. It doesn't flow as much as I want to. Nothing will be changed, promise. I'm going to add on so that it will flow to my liking. I hope you like this new chapter. 3 _**

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><p>"I wonder what's taking her so long." Sango thought out loud as they sat around the living room; drawing the attention of everyone else in the room –except for Kikyo, of course. It'd been ten minutes since they left her in the room. Rin gave Sesshoumaru a worried glance. He didn't say anything, just wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I'm going to check on her." She got up from her seat and jogged up the stairs to the room where they had been talking together.<p>

When she opened the door, she froze. The room was a mess. The chairs were turned over; pillows were thrown around the room, and even a few clothes. Luckily, none of them were clothes that were being worn. She looked around before walking in, slowly. "Kagome…" she whispered into the silence. "Kagome." She repeated a little louder. That's when she felt the wind blow against her face. Her face whipped towards the window; it was open. She didn't waste any more time. Turning on her heels she raced back down the stairs. "Guys!" She yelled.

Kikyo jumped at the sudden sound. "Was that necessary?" She glared.

Ignoring her, she made her way to Rin and her husband. "She's not there."

Rin was immediately alert. "What?"

"She's not there. The room's trashed and I can't find her."

Miroku shrugged. "Maybe she was having a fit?" It was lame, but anything was possible with Kagome.

The girls shook their heads. "No," Rin sighed. "She wouldn't do that." She looked up at her husband; her fear undeniable. "I know she wouldn't do that."

He rubbed her shoulder, trying to comfort her. "I know." He said before looking at his mother, who was glaring at her youngest and his girlfriend. "What do you think we should do?" He asked his father.

"We can't do anything." He sighed. "Legally, she's not missing until tomorrow."

Rin tensed by Sesshoumaru's side. "We can't leave her alone like that." She was getting upset.

He looked at the small woman in his arms. "You need to calm down." He said calmly.

"When Kagome is safe, I will." She sniffed, and tried to stand up. Sango was by her side in a heartbeat, helping her to her feet.

"Where are you going?" He asked defensively.

"To go see what I can do, since nobody else is." She grabbed on to Sango's arm and together they walked out of the room. She stopped in the doorway. "Izayoi, will you please join us?"

Izayoi snapped away from her son, who was trying to push Kikyo off of him every chance he got. She nodded and looked at her husband before she stood up. "Legally, you can't do anything, but think about what this means for your family." She was quickly at her daughter-in-law's side and they exited the scene.

Running his hand through his hair, Sesshoumaru gave a frustrated sigh. "Now what?"

"Just let her be." Kikyo snipped. "Why do you care anyway? It's not like she's important or anything."

They all tensed around her. "She's more important than you realize." InuTaisho murmured.

As she tried to cling InuYasha he had subtly rejected her touches, as he had all night. Having enough of it, she gave him an irritated stare. "What is wrong with you?" She sighed. "I'm sitting here, ready for the taking and you avoid me like your life depends on it."

"It does." He said matter-of-factly.

"What do you mean?" She looked confused, with good reason.

He sighed and turned towards her. "I've been meaning to do this for a long time, I just didn't know how to tell you. It's something you need to know and I apologize for keeping this from you." He paused, waiting to see if she would say anything; when she didn't, he continued. "I'm married."

She burst out laughing. "Married? Please, tell me you're joking. Who would marry you?" She clamped her hand over her mouth, realizing what she'd said.

His eyes turned dark. 'Well, at least I know how she feels about it.' He growled to himself. He'd wasted all that time on her, hoping that one day they would devote themselves to each other forever. He stood up, towering over her. "Kagome would."

Her hand dropped into her lap, and so did her jaw. "Excuse me?" She screeched. "You married that bitch? Are you fucking insane?"

"No." He replied. "I was insane for dating you." He wrapped his fingers around her arm, and pulled her up, shoving her towards the front door. "Now, get the fuck out of my house." Under normal circumstances, he would have asked his father to dismiss her since it was his house, but ending everything with her by himself just seemed to be the right thing to do. He led her out, and as she turned to say something, he slammed the door in her face.

A voice behind him made him turn. "Feel better?"

He smiled sadly at Miroku. "I do, actually. God, I'm such an idiot." Miroku opened his mouth to say something, but his mother's yell drew both of their attention and they rushed back into the living room. "What happened?" InuYasha was at his mother's side in an instant.

"We have to find Kagome." Her eyes filled with tears.

"That's the plan." Miroku answered.

She gave him a peeved glare. "We need to find her soon." She responded.

"I understand the rush, but is there an extra reason you're pushing us to our limit?" He asked.

She looked at her husband, having a silent conversation through their eyes. InuYasha had seen them do this since he was just a little boy, but he wasn't sure how they did it; it just didn't seem possible. His father nodded, breaking InuYasha out of his own little world.

"What is it?" He asked.

"You'll find out when it's time." He answered cryptically before looking at Sesshoumaru. "I need you to call in some favors." Sesshoumaru nodded, as though he knew exactly what favors to call in and left the room.

InuTaisho looked at Miroku and gave him a few things to do before he made his way towards his wife. "I'm supposed to what? Twiddle my thumbs?" InuYasha snapped.

He looked back at his son. "Find your mate!" He growled.

"Don't you think I would if I could?" He growled back. "I have no idea where she is." He murmured sadly, bowing his head in defeat.

He heard a sigh before a gentle hand was laid on his shoulder. He looked up to see his father's face. "You can." He stated. "She's your mate and you have a special bond with her." After a pause, he continued as he looked in his son's eyes. "You can do this; find her."

He nodded. "Okay."

Kagome sighed as she lay in the bed that she was chained to. She'd been there for a few hours that she knew of. At first, she'd struggled till the cuffs cut into her skin, making her bleed. She hadn't cared; she kept on struggling until a man, whose face was covered, came in and told her why she was here and that it didn't matter how much she tried to get free, she never would unless he released her.

She remembered his words. She was here to lure her husband and his family out. He wanted them and he would stop at nothing until he had them. It was all she was told, but it still set a bad feeling inside her stomach. "InuYasha…" She sighed, tears welling up in her eyes. "Please, don't find me." They hadn't been married long; a few months, but she did love him. She didn't know the reason, or how she had come to care for someone so fast, but she did indeed love him and she knew that. 'I don't want anything to happen to you.' She silently cried.

She ran her fingers over the mark he had left on her and it was barely there anymore, and that made her ache for him even more. When she had started falling in love with him, she had blamed it on this little mark, but the more time she spent with him, the more she knew that was a lie she was telling herself because she was naive. Resting other hand over her stomach, she sighed. She wasn't sure if she were pregnant or not. Everything she'd been experiencing, morning sickness, sensitive smell, more sickness and gaining a little weight, were all signs that she was, but because of the situation she was in right now, she hoped she wasn't. Kagome didn't know how long she'd be here, and if she were pregnant, she didn't want to give birth in such a place, with such a man in the same vicinity as herself.

The rusty door made a terrible screeching sound as it was forced open, revealing the man that held her captive. "I see you've finally stopped struggling."

She scoffed at him. "I'm just wasting my energy. I'm going to be here for awhile so I might as well just lay here in peace and not hurt myself."

"I wouldn't get too comfortable." He smiled evilly. "You're precious husband is on his way to find you."

She went cold at his words. "Leave him alone, please." She wasn't one to beg, in fact she'd never done so in her life, but she would do this or anything for her husband.

"Unfortunately for you, your words are lost on my ears. InuYasha and his family will fall." His words sounded like a bad B movie dialogue.

"You don't know InuYasha." She huffed, before turning her head away from him.

He was on the bed with her in an instant, leaning over her. He growled in her face. "I know him a lot more than you would think."

Something dawned on her; his voice was almost instantly recognizable. "Naraku?" She turned his face towards his.

His eyes widened as he distanced himself from her. "Do not speak to me so casually, human." Without another word, he left, slamming the rusted door shut.

"InuYasha…" She whispered to herself, almost as if his name were a prayer. She couldn't do anything, and she hated herself for that. Her eyes were heavy as though she'd been fighting off sleep. "Come on!" She yelled to herself in a burst of anger. "I'm being held captive, how the hell can I sleep?" The rhetorical question bounced off the walls and echoed around her; reminding her of how pathetic her situation was. Tears once again fell down her face and soon, exhaustion claimed her and she fell asleep.

She woke up as something was thrown up against the door. She tried to jump up, but the chains restrained her movements. The noises on the outside buzzed in her ears, as she tried to wake up and get familiar with her surroundings again. The pounding continued and she finally heard her name.

"Kagome!" It was Sango! Kagome could have wept with joy, but knowing what Naraku would do to the man she loved, she was tempted to tell them to go away.

"Sango!" She yelled back, "I'm in here!" There was a moment of silence. Had they left? She almost sighed in defeat, until there was pounding again. The door slammed open, revealing Sango, Ayame and InuYasha. They were by her side as soon as they saw her.

Kagome fought against the chains with renewed strength. He was alive. He climbed on the bed, wanting to rip the chains off the bed to free her. "Don't." Ayame said as she made her way around the bed. Taking a pin out of her hair, she worked on the lock. Once it popped open, she quickly worked on the other lock, finally freeing her.

She was up on her knees immediately as she wrapped her arms around InuYasha's neck, pulling him to her for a passionate kiss. He growled against her lips as he deepened their kiss, afraid that if he let go of her, he'd never hold her again.

Sango cleared her throat, making them pull back from each other. She smiled at her friends and then at her husband. "I was afraid I'd never see you again."

"What makes you think that would happen?" He asked, tucking a few stray strands of hair behind her ears.

"Naraku said that he'd kill you." Her voice cracked as tears threatened to fall. Oh yeah, she was definitely pregnant. Even now, these mood swings we killing her.

He growled t the name. "Naraku's a pussy." He crawled off the bed and helped her off as well. "Sesshoumaru and dad are dealing with him just fine." Her wrists felt strange and he looked down, noticing how raw they looked.

"What the hell happened?" He gaped.

"I'm not very good at playing victim." She replied, giving him one of her small smiles. "I had to at least try to get out of here... struggle a little bit."

"You could have seriously hurt yourself." He frowned.

"It doesn't matter." She shrugged.

He pulled her close and whispered in her ear. "It does to me." She looked up into his eyes, shocked.

"Why?"

He looked uncomfortable, but he confessed to her. "Because I love you, okay?"

Her smile widened. "I love you too." She kissed his cheek. "So much for only business."

"It's still business, we're just altering the terms." He pulled her towards the door.

She looked at Sango as they carefully but quickly left the dreaded room. "Where's Miroku?"

She smiled at her best friend. "He's with Rin and Izayoi, just in case anything happened, Sesshoumaru didn't want them to be alone."

"We'll talk later." InuYasha interrupted before anyone else could say anything else. He let go of her wrist only to grabbed her hand as they ran down the hallway into the main room of the building. Her eyes widened at the sight. People she didn't even know existed fought their friends and Sesshoumaru's colleagues. Sesshoumaru and InuTaisho fought Naraku with what seemed to be little to no effort.

Sesshoumaru made eye contact with InuYasha and nodded. Tugging her forward, they ran towards the exit. "Where are we going?" Kagome asked.

He threw her a confused look over his shoulder. "We're leaving this place, unless you'd like to stay."

"I'm more than happy to leave." She replied, a little breathless as they met the outside. Fresh air caressed her face and filled her lungs. When they made it to the car, she saw everyone leaving the inside of the building as well. Just as the last person came running out, InuYasha grabbed her and ducked behind the vehicle. She stiffened as an explosion sounded through the air. She wrapped her arms around him for comfort. They stayed like that for what seemed like forever, until she saw Sesshoumaru in front of them.

"Is it over?" She could only hope. When he nodded, she felt relieved. Looking up at InuYasha, she asked. "Do you think he's dead?"

He shrugged. "Who knows, but if he isn't, he definitely won't be back for a long time… and if he does, we'll be ready to kick his ass." He gave her a comforting smile. He stood up with her still in his arms. "Let's go home." She nodded as they entered the car and left the flaming building behind.

The ride back was an awkward silence, but she welcomed it. She didn't know what to say and she didn't really and she didn't really want to think about it. When they arrived at the Takahashi home, they made their way up the steps and as they opened the doors, the two women inside rushed out and hugged her. It'd only been a night since she'd disappeared, but they acted like they hadn't seen her for weeks, even months. She gladly welcomed the tears and hugs that came along with their welcome.

They released her as InuYasha went to her side. She looked up at him. "I'm going to go take a shower." He only nodded and let her go.

She made her way up the stairs and into the room she had stayed in. To her surprise, the room was completely clean; all evidence of her attack was wiped away, and oddly enough, it made her feel a little safer. The first thing she did was check to make sure the window was closed and locked. She took some of InuYasha's clothes out of the drawers and went into the bathroom, turning on the water in the shower. Looking at the counter, she noticed a little box. Looking at the note beside it, she smiled.

_Kagome,_

_I want it to be more than an "I think I'm pregnant." I had Izayoi go buy a pregnancy test for you. Take it and if you are, InuYasha will definitely be the first to know._

_-Rin_

Kagome laughed in spite of everything that had happened. She locked the bathroom door and undressed before stepping into the shower. The water on her back was amazing. It ran down her body and she felt the tension in her muscles ease and she instantly felt cleaner. She took her time soaping her hair and washing her body. It felt amazing. She soothingly rubbed her stomach, now hoping that there definitely was a growing life inside of her.

When she was done, she quickly dried herself off and took her pregnancy test. Five minutes, that's what she had to wait, and it was one of the longest five minutes of her life. To pass the time, she got dressed, brushed her hair and teeth and then sat down, slowly counting down the time. She looked at the stick when the time was up. Her heart skipped a beat. 'I'm pregnant.' She thought, stunned. It hadn't seemed real until now. She quickly unlocked the door and made her way into the bedroom. She stopped in her tracks when she saw InuYasha lying on the bed, waiting for her.

He gave her a soft smile. "Hey."

She could help but smile back. "Hey." She crawled on the bed and made her way to his side.

He kissed her neck, before looking her in the eyes. "You looked surprised to see me."

"I was." She answered honestly.

"I wanted to make sure nothing else happened to you." He replied, his voice soft.

She gave him a serious look. "Something did happen."

His eyes widened with worry. "What is it?"

He sounded so distressed, but she couldn't help but smile. "I'm pregnant." She bit her lip nervously, waiting for his response.

He couldn't breathe as she announced her news. "What?"

She leaned over him, her hair falling to curtain his face. "We're having a baby." Her smiled widened.

He rolled them over and leaned over her, kissing her passionately. They hadn't touched each other in weeks, and she was desperate for his hands on her.

He ripped his clothes off of her and then the ones on his body before he took her. They needed this and they were in no mood for foreplay. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him as he thrust into of her. They'd only had twice, and it had been awhile. When he thrust into her, she was tight. He was already so hard; his previous kisses gave her hope of what was to come, making her wet. Their bonding was primal and rough. She moaned into his shoulder as he continuously thrust himself inside of her. Something inside of him shattered as he pierced her skin with his fangs, renewing the mark that had began to fade. She couldn't contain her voice as she screamed his name; a swift and massive orgasm taking her. He growled her name as he came inside of her.

They lay there in each other's arms. "That was amazing." She smiled into his chest.

"Yeah, you are." He said without thinking.

She gave him a tight squeeze. "So, I'm your mate, huh?"

He stiffened and looked down at her, hoping she wasn't mad. "Yeah."

"Good." She smiled.

He looked up at the ceiling. "Did Rin tell you?"  
>"Yeah. Why didn't you tell me?"<p>

"I didn't know how to tell you. After everything... I didn't think you'd believe me, or worse, hate me for it."

She flicked his ear. "I couldn't hate you." They stayed silent for awhile.

She pulled herself up and placed a kiss on his lips. "Think we should tell them?" She asked.

He gave her a seductive grin. "I think they heard us."

She lightly and playfully slapped his chest. "I meant the baby, not the sex."

He sighed before he wrapped his arms around her bare waist. "Yeah, I guess we should."

She kissed him lightly again before she got up and got dressed. He slowly followed her and they made their way down the stairs to the others. She wasn't surprised when she saw Sango and Miroku still there, but seeing everyone else from earlier there was definitely a little more than shocking. It was like they were holding a party of some sort, except they were all sitting down, having casual conversations.

"Kagome!" Rin called her name, waving at her. Sesshoumaru looked up from what he was doing with Shippo and gave them a subtle smile. They made their way over to the couple and Kagome gave her and her nephew a hug.

"Hi Shippo." She smiled at the little boy.

"Hi!" He beamed up at her.

Before she could say anything, Rin commanded her attention again. "So…" Rin started.

Kagome nodded. "We're having a baby." She smiled. Rin and Sesshoumaru were the first to congratulate them, and soon after everyone gave them well wishes with the baby on the way. Izayoi was hovering over her and Rin the rest of the night, making sure they were comfortable, asking if they needed anything else.

"This is definitely isn't going to be a boring pregnancy." She smiled to her husband as they finally found a place to sit down away from the crowd.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Did you expect it to be?"

"No, but I'm glad it won't be." She smiled. "I'm glad that this baby is going to have a family that loves it, even if it isn't born yet."

"Of course they will." He looked down at her. "They love you too."

"Oh yeah?" She asked, acting clueless. She knew that they loved her, and she loved them too. They were her family now.

"Yeah." He smiled and lightly touched his lips to hers. "You know what?" He whispered against her lips.

"What?"

"I love you too." He pressed his lips to hers again, making both their hearts soar.

* * *

><p><strong><em>You're all going to be so proud of me. It took me an hour and a half to write this whole chapter. I had major writer's block so I wasn't writing for awhile. When I looked at it finally, everything just kind of came flying at me. I want to thank one of my best friends for the inspiration to write this chapter, even though she doesn't know it. She's actually having a baby so I had something to go on anyway.<em>**

**_There's only one more chapter left before this is over. Again, I'm doing major reconstruction on this story. Nothing is being changed, just added. I love everyone who has stuck with me this far. Lots of kisses. Let me know what you think._**


	9. Author's Note

_**Author's Note:**_

**_I just wanted to take a few minutes and tell you how much I appreciate for sticking with me through the whole story... and even people who haven't; thank you for even looking at my story. It means a lot to me. _**

****_**If you started reading this story before March 2, 2012, please, I beg you, go back to the beginning and reread it. I've made drastic changes (I haven't taken anything out, just added to), and it makes way more sense. I love you all so much and I can't tell you how much it means to me that you guys would even look at my story. **_

_**Again, I thank you with everything I am. This means so much to me. **_

_**One more chapter to go (and maybe a little bit more editing) and this story will completely be finished. I really appreciate all the reviews and critiques. I do take them into consideration. They aren't just words to me, they're a part of what make me into a better writer. **_

_**Thank you, and enjoy the "new" and end of "Only Business"**_

_**Update: I know you guys were really expecting more of Miroku and Sango, and I might add a little bit in the epilogue about them, more than I had planned to already. This story was basically about InuYasha and Kagome (go figure), so I wanted to focus on them. With everything happening in Kagome's life, I didn't know how I could fit Sango's issues in there too. I know, I know, a good friend always has time to listen... but this is my story. :P**_

_**If Sango wanted to talk to Kagome about her problems, Kagome would have listened, I can at least say that much. Sango is more of a "suffer-in-silence type of girl. So... I don't know why I'm explaining my characters to you... anyway. Stay tuned for the Epilogue. :D**_


	10. Epilogue

_**YOU GUYS! Last chapter. Hopefully everything is figured out in this chapter. If there are still questions, please, let me know. It's my bad, and I'll go back and fix it. Promise. :)**_

_**One thing... I can't think of kick-a baby name so I'm just going to write the first name that comes to mind. Ugh... I'm such a bad person for not knowing a good name. **_

* * *

><p><strong><em><em>****2 Years Later:**

****Kagome sighed as she rolled over in bed. She reached out, intending to touch her husband, but opened her eyes when she didn't feel him there. She sat up in bed and looked around the room. 'Where is he?' She thought to herself.

Getting up, she made her way to their son, Kokahu's room; when she couldn't find him, that's usually where he was. InuYasha was much more attached to their son than she thought he'd be. When she was pregnant with their son, she had watched how he and InuTaisho had reacted to each other. Obviously they loved each other, but they didn't seem to have a close relationship. She walked into the room and smiled. InuYasha was there with their son in his arms. There was a breeze in the room, due to the fact that he had opened a window.

She walked towards them and wrapped her arms around him from behind. He looked over his shoulder at her. "Good morning." He whispered.

"Morning." She whispered, burying her head in his back. "Why are you up so early?"

"He was getting fussy; I didn't want to wake you up." InuYasha had grown up a lot during her pregnancy and even more so when Kohaku had been born.

She let go of him and walked in front of him, looking into his eyes. "I didn't hear him..."

"I know." He smiled, leaning down to kiss her.

She looked at him thoughtfully before she let out a small giggle.

He gave her a strange look. "What?"

She put her hand over her mouth. "Sorry, I just couldn't help but make a quick comparison between you, your brother and your father."

"Why?"

"I look at how you two have a relationship with your dad and it's completely different than how you two act with your children."

Before he could say anything, Kohaku opened his tiny eyes and reached for his mother. "Mama." He was the cute little boy. He took after his father, his only physical trait from his mother was his chocolate eyes.

She reached out for her son and took him in her arms. His legs flailed around, lightly making contact with her stomach. "Carefully." She smiled sweetly. She looked down at her slightly bulging stomach. She and InuYasha found out a few months ago that she was pregnant again. They were both more than excited, now that they knew what to expect.

Kohaku wrapped his arms around Kagome's neck and lay his head on her shoulder. Kagome and InuYasha could only smile at each other. She ran her hand up and down her son's back. "Hey." She whispered, only getting a small grunt in response - yeah, just like his father. "Do you want to go see Kaede today?"

His head shot up in excitement. "Kade!" He had a little problem with pronouncing his cousin's name, but they all found it cute.

Rin had given birth to Kaede about a month after the Naraku incident, making her five months older than Kohaku. They played together all the time. Unlike Kagome, Rin wasn't planning on having any more children. She was extremely small, and Sesshoumaru obviously gave the genes of having a strong healthy baby. The pregnancy was fine but the birth wasn't something either of them wanted to go through again. Between Shippo and Kaede, they had a big enough family.

InuYasha's phone rang, breaking Kagome's soft words towards her son. She gave him a slightly annoyed look. Did he really have to carry his phone with him all the time?

He shrugged and answered the phone and walked away from them.

She sighed. InuYasha was a successful partner in his father's company. He had gone to college right after graduating from high school and graduated last December, all the while working with his father and taking care of his family. He was always on a phone call it seemed like.

Kagome herself was a stay at home mom. It seemed like the norm for the Takahashi women. The men wanted them with home with their children. Rin and Kagome had many play dates with their children; even Sango came with them occassionally.

She and Miroku had began officially dating after he had made his declaration to Kikyo in class. They had definitely taken it slow, or so everyone thought. They had been off and on for months. He was too friendly with girls and she couldn't stand that. When she found out that she was pregnant, he had gotten down on one knee and asked for her to marry him; promising that he'd never even look at another woman again- and he hadn't. They hadn't had anything extravagant, just their friends and family there. She gave birth to twins eight months later. Her children were now eleven months old, and she was close to her due date for her new baby.

She still wasn't close to her family and that hurt her. Her mother had been on shaky terms with InuYasha's father once everyone found out how her husband had tried to publicly degrade the Takahashi sons, but that was before the divorce. Her mother and her husband -she refused to call him father anymore- had ended up getting a divorce and her and her brother had moved away, leaving her grandfather all alone. InuYasha and Kagome had visited him on many occasions and he loves and dotes on their child.

The breeze finally got to Kagome and she went to close the window. Turning around, InuYasha was walking towards her again. "Work?" She asked.

"Yeah, sorry." He looked sincere at least.

She shook her head. "Don't apologize. I know there's a lot going on right now."

He gave her an apologetic smile. "It's Saturday; I wish they'd wait until the actual business hours."

"Oh please, I know you enjoy it." She smiled, showing him that she really didn't mind.

"Sometimes. I enjoy spending time with my family more."

"God, I hope so."

He glanced at his watch and then back at her. "I have a surprise for you." He commented.

She looked suspicious. "That's kind of scary."

"You'll like it." He took the baby from her before there was a knock at the door. "And that would be it."

"InuYasha..." She grabbed his wrist and looked at his watch as well. "It's 7:30. What kind of surprise is it?"

He nudged her a little. "Go look."

She made her way downstairs towards the front door. She put her hand on the doorknob and looked back at her husband. He only nodded. She slowly opened the door and froze at the sight on the side. "Mom? Sota?" She looked back at her husband and he smiled. Turning back around, she cried as she pulled them into a hug. They stood there for a few minutes, crying in each other's arms. They broke apart when her son called out her name, nervous. She welcomed them in and went to pick up her son; introducing them to each other.

Kohaku was more than eager to welcome them to the family. He hugged and played with them, making Kagome laugh. She and her mother talked about everything: her husband, the baby, her pregnancy then and now, where they would go from there... They both agreed to take it slow but still keep in touch and be a part of each other's lives. Sota and their mom had both moved back in with her grandfather, to her relief.

Noticing InuYasha making his way into the kitchen, she excused herself.

"Hey." She said, getting his attention. He turned around before she pushed him against the counter; grabbing his neck she pulled him down for a kiss. "Thank you." She smiled when she pulled away.

"Are you happy?" He asked, searching her eyes.

"They were missing in my life and it hurt, but I never have been or ever will be unhappy while I'm with you. I love you, and I always will."

He wrapped his arms around her waist. "I love you too." He kissed her.

She pulled away slightly. "Who was on the phone earlier?"

"Hmm?" He arched an eyebrow at her. "Oh, it was only business." He leaned down and kissed her again, making her forget about everything around her.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Ohmygeez! Only Business is finished! I'm so excitedrelieved/sad/any other emotion that I could describe right now. I REALLY hope you all liked the story. I'm sure I missed something, but like I said, let me know and I'll go fix/add whatever it was. I'm so ready for critiques if you have any. Please, please, please. Tell me what you really think about the story. Serious opinions. :D  
><em>**_**I love all of you who have taken the time to read this. Seriously. :)**_

**_-K_**


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